Seminar in Ethnography and Fieldwork
An advanced anthropology seminar from MIT OpenCourseWare focused on ethnographic research methods, ethics, and representation. The course works through debates about how anthropologists conduct fieldwork, gather data, and write about the people and communities they study, with attention to power, consent, and the politics of representing others in academic text. Materials include the syllabus, weekly readings drawn from anthropological theory and case studies, and assignments that ask students to engage critically with published ethnographies and to reflect on their own research practice. The course is aimed at students already familiar with basic anthropological concepts who want to examine the craft and controversies behind fieldwork itself. As with other MIT OpenCourseWare offerings, all lecture notes and materials are free to access, with no certificate offered.