Engaging the Present
Gillian Cowlishaw, University of Technology Sydney
My paper is a celebration of ethnographic practice in its classic form, in particular writing that is based on extended, empirical field work, the ‘being there’, ‘going elsewhere’, immersing oneself in some other social space with other social subjects (which may also be our own kind seen ethnographically). If we are to rescue the practice of ethnography from erosion through overuse and misuse, anthropologists need to be clear about what is valuable, unique and profound about this method of social enquiry. First, the value of ethnographic research lies in its ability to gain intimate and accurate insight into the fabric of social life through personal engagement, immersion and experience. Systematic observation and rigorous analysis cannot be limited to what is quantifiable, predictable and independent of other phenomena. Second, ethnographic enquiry entails respect rather than exploitation of informants; lack of interest and avoidance are hostile acts of indifference, often concealed beneath a surface solicitude. Finally ethnography needs to assert its strength as social science of the here and the now, not merely about far flung others or about the past, but about the cultural dynamics of the present.
