Author Archives: toondema

From even the introduction, this book asserts a strong narrative voice that provides perspective on the author’s ethnographic methods as a woman in Sri Lanka. I enjoyed the way Jegathesan described her interactions with the people around her, interjecting important … Continue reading →

I am responsible for leading the class discussion on Chapter 2 on Wednesday so I will give a brief overview of Abrell’s Saving animals: multi species ecologies of rescue and care introduction with regard to the major themes of rights and property. … Continue reading →

Garcia’s The Pastoral Clinic: Addiction and Dispossession along the Rio Grande provides a fascinating look into the lifestyle and challenges faced by people in New Mexico, tracing complicated histories of heroin addiction, detox resources, overdoses, and structural violence. Methodologically, the … Continue reading →

A sentiment that stood out to me was that “Ethnographic data is fleeting, and the ethnographer’s job is to record it before it disappears or dissipates,” meaning one must be prepared in advance of their interviews to efficiently document minutiae … Continue reading →

After reading The Sovereign Street: Making Revolution in Urban Bolivia, a major theme that I engaged the most with was the relationship between social roles, landscapes, and the capacity for protest actions. The ingenuity of the Bolivian people within urban … Continue reading →

Out of both readings, I was most drawn to Bernard’s section on response rate. Bernard advocates for Dillman’s method when mailing a research survey in the United States. I found the steps in his method fascinating, as details down to the … Continue reading →

I found the author’s exploration of how political elements pervade and define classroom interactions fascinating. The relationship between race, academic success, economic mobility, and rates of mass incarceration per certain demographics is shocking and something Shange traces back to “enrollment … Continue reading →

I really gravitated toward the discussion of “thinking about the nonobvious as discoverable” when determining a research topic (26). This idea is relevant not only in terms of being creative when questioning the world around us, but also in terms … Continue reading →

The Tsing reading prompted my reflection on the relationship between various meanings of “nature”: such as “human nature” – one’s disposition – or “Mother Nature” – the source of life and wild spaces. In addition, I am currently reading William … Continue reading →