AFR 1503 – THE HIP HOP WORLDVIEW

AFR 1503 – THE HIP HOP WORLDVIEW

ETHNOGRAPHIC ESSAY ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION

PAGES: 5-7 PAGES (not including your references page)

FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT, YOU WILL ENGAGE IN A TOTAL OF TWO RESEARCH ACTIVITIES. PLEASE CHOOSE OPTION 1 OR OPTION 2 BELOW:

 OPTION 1

For option 1, you will conduct:

ONE ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEW (TOPICAL OR ORAL HISTORY) AND

ONE PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION ACTIVITY

OR

• OPTION 2

For option 2, you will conduct:

TWO ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEWS (Topical or Oral History)

 (Alternate Options. Permission is required from the Professor for alternate options.  Alternate 1. Focus Groups (group interviews with 3 or more people). Alternate 2. Intensive Artist Ethnography.One Oral History/Life History Interview of a Hip Hop Artist – ONLY ARTISTS AND ONLY WITH PERMISSION +An Analysis of two or more examples of the artist’s work and/or  An Observation of the Artist in the process of making his/her art)

If you choose Participant Observation, you may want to observe the same people that you interview, or you may want to interview and observe different individuals. This is up to you. Decide which combination of research methods you will use. The approach for each is described in detail below.

REFERENCES REQUIREMENT (3 TOTAL):In addition to your original ethnographic research, this essay must include AT LEAST THREE ACADEMIC REFERENCES. One reference MUST be from course reading. One reference must come from an outside book or article. The third reference may come from either.

INTERSECTIONAL ANALYSIS REQUIREMENT: YOUR ANALYSIS MUST INCLUDE AN ANALYSIS OF AT LEAST TWO OF THE FOLLOWING 3SOCIAL VARIABLES: 1) RACE AND/OR ETHNICITY, 2) GENDER AND/OR SEXUALITY 3) CLASS AND/OR MONEY. YOU MAY, ALSO, WISH TO ANALYZE  OTHER VARIABLES SUCH AS NATIONALITY AND/OR IMMIGRATION, LANGUAGE POLITICS, RELIGION, EDUCATION, PLACE/SPACE, REGION, FAMILY, ETC.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

1. YOU MUST INTERVIEW AT LEAST ONE PERSON OF AFRICAN DESCENT FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT. YOU MAY, ALSO, INTERVIEW OR OBSERVE PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT OF AFRICAN DESCENT, BUT ONE INTERVIEW MUST BE WITH A PERSON OF AFRICAN DESCENT.
2. YOUR RESEARCH MUST BE RELATED TO THE TOPIC OF HIP HOP CULTURE, TO THE IMPACT OR INFLUENCE OF HIP HOP CULTURE OR RELATED TO A HIP HOP ART FORM SUCH AS RAPPING/RHYMING; HIP HOP MUSIC; HIP HOP DJING; HIP HOP DANCE, HIP HOP VISUAL ART SUCH GRAFFITI ART,  HIP HOP FASHION, HIP HOP THEATER, ETC. IF YOU ARE NOT SURE THAT YOUR RESEARCH WORKS FOR THIS CLASS, PLEASE DISCUSS THIS WITH ME.
3. YOUR INTERVIEWS AND PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION MUST OCCUR IN PERSON. YOU CANNOT CONDUCT A PHONE INTERVIEW OR AN ONLINE INTERVIEW OR LOOK AT A DVD/VIDEOTAPE/OR ONLINE RECORDING OF A PERFORMANCE.

Ethnography literally means “writing culture” so your ethnographic research will involve an analysis of people of African descent and the concepts of race, gender, and class in cultural, social, and political context. For your ethnographic research, you will engage in one of the combinations of research activities listed below. Your ethnographic research may either consist of:

 ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEWS

Ethnographic Interviewing is a research method that requires a dialogue between the research participant and the researcher.  This dialogue is based on questions posed by the researcher. The research participant is the “teacher” and the researcher is the “student.”  These tend to be semi-structured interviews based on open-ended questions, but they may also include or be replaced by more scripted forced choice survey questions. Many ethnographic interviews include a combination of both. Critique your questions before the interview. Are they leading questions that overstate your own opinion or indirectly pressure the participant into a particular response? If so, rewrite them.

(NOTE ON FOCUS GROUPS:  FOCUS GROUPS ARE GROUP INTERVIEWS. THEY FOLLOW MANY OF THE SAME RULES AS THE ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEW.  IF YOU WISH TO CONDUCT A FOCUS GROUP, PLEASE GET PERMISSION FROM ME.)

 TOPICAL ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEWS

A topical ethnographic interview is an ethnographic interview that focuses on how the interview subject thinks about or has had experiences related to a particular topic, concept, idea, or practice. The topical ethnographic interview for this class should focus on a topic that relates to Hip Hop Art and Culture AND/OR a topic that addresses how Hip Hop Art and Culture have shaped the research participants’ cultural identity, perspective or “worldview.”

ORAL HISTORY/LIFE HISTORY – ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEWS

(This option must only be conducted with an artist, and you must get permission from me ahead of time.

 A lie history interview is a “birth to the present” interview. You must interview the person about the entirety of their life experience. However, you must, also, emphasize the role of race and/or ethnicity and the role of Hip Hop art or culture in their lives. The oral history/life history ethnographic interviews for this class should attempt to address:

1. The BIOGRAPHY of the interview participant from birth to the present AND
2. The CULTURAL IDENTITY AND EXPERIENCE of the participant. AND
3. The role of race/ethnicity AND/OR class AND/OR Gender in the life of the participant AND
4. The role of Hip Hop Artistry in the life of the participant AND
5. The role of Hip Hop Culture in the life of the participant

 ETHNOGRAPHIC INTERVIEW PROCESS (for both topical and oral history interviews):

 Decide if you would like to conduct an interview using survey questions in which each of the research participants responds to identical questions or a more informal open-ended interview style in which you present a few scripted questions to the research participant but also leave yourself open to asking a range of additional questions. Even in surveys, you may ask additional questions for clarification. You may also want to combine both rigid survey questions with open-ended questions or conduct two different types of interviews.

• Write your interview questions. Do not generate too many primary questions. Between 5-10 questions tends to be adequate. However, if you are conducting a forced-choice survey (with yes or no or a, b, c, d answers), you will need more questions. Remember, if you are conducting a semi-structured interview, you will want to keep your questions open ended. Make sure that in addition to basic information questions, you also include questions that invite more than a yes or no answer or a brief response. You may want to write down potential follow up questions in addition to each main question. They will guide you, even if you do not end up using them.
• Identify research participants. Ask for permission to interview themand ask them if they will be willing to either read or briefly discuss the content of your final paper before you submit it.
• Conduct your interviews. (Even if you are exclusively conducting surveys, you must verbally ask the questions and fill out the information on each survey.) If you have decided to conduct a semi-structured interview, be prepared to spontaneously ask additional questions in response to the comments made by the research participant.
• After each interview, ask your research participants if they have any questions for you and ask them to respond critically to the interview (your questions, style, etc.)
• Make sure that you either take thorough notes or tape record the interview.
• Remember the single most important aspect of writing essays based on interviews is to treat the people you have interviewed with dignity and respect both during the interview and in your documentation of the interview.
• After you have written your paper or have a strong outline, return to your interview participants and ask them to either a) read the paper and give comments or b) listen to your conclusions and comment on them. Include their response in your paper.

PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION

“participant observation  is a research method in which the researcher participates in a social activity and may live for a lengthy period with those being researched. This type of research is classified as qualitative rather than quantitative and is sometimes used by researchers who are suspicious of experimental methods, questionnaires etc., which may be seen as unduly artificial. Observation may be supplemented by in-depth interviews, documentary evidence etc.” (source unknown).

Participant Observation Process:

1)         Select a field site: a night club, restaurant, café, dorm, mall etc.

• Identify Research Participants (you may do this either before or at the time of the research)
• Observe the participants for at least 1 hour if you can, preferably longer
• If possible, take field notes (see field note format below) during the observation to review for the written assignment. If this would serve as a distraction, then be sure to take field notes immediately after the observation.
• If the field site is not a public place, you must ask permission to observe the research participants

Field Note Format:

1) OBSERVATIONS (WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE). For your observations, pay attention to the manifestation of social categories and constructs addressed in class including (“race,” ethnicity, skin color, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic class, language, religion, age, health, etc.) Also ask the following: What is the social setting, location, time of day? Observe the physical space and the objects in it; what information do they give you?  How do individuals interact with each other if at all? How are they spatially organized? Are they segregated according to the above-mentioned categories? What is their purpose for being in this space? How do people carry their bodies? What are people wearing, and how is their hair styled (an important issue to African American women)? How do they use language AND silence? Who speaks, for how long? Who is most respected? Ask yourself what patterns, structures, themes you are observing? Also, ask yourself if you are observing an unusual event that challenges conventional patterns of behavior?

2) INTERPRETATIONS (WHY, HOW). For each of your observations discuss why you believe the event or circumstance you are observing has occurred. You may also wish to discuss how the process you observed has occurred. (For some events, you may wish to discuss how an event has unfolded in column 1 and why it unfolded the way it did in column 2).

ETHNOGRAPHIC ESSAY: NOTES ON STRUCTURE AND KEY ELEMENTS

Following is an elaboration of the instructions you received for your ethnographic essay.  It is intended to assist you in structuring and writing your essay. Writing an outline prior to writing your paper is STRONGLY recommended. It will greatly reduce your writing time as it will focus your research, energy, and ideas.  You may use the following as a guide for your outline or create one that is more specific.

 

GENERAL NOTES

1. You must use pseudonyms for research participants to protect their identities unless they give permission to do otherwise.
2. Remember that the single most important aspect of writing essays based on interviews is to TREAT THE PEOPLE YOU HAVE INTERVIEWED WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT BOTH DURING THE INTERVIEW AND IN YOUR DOCUMENTATION OF THE INTERVIEW. This does not mean that you cannot be honest and direct in your analysis. It does mean that you must privilege respect for the person you have interviewed over all other concerns including your grade.
3. 3. DO NOT FORGET: you must include your HYPOTHESIS (along with your THESIS) in your introduction.
4. In addition to your original ethnographic research, this essay must include AT LEAST THREE ACADEMIC REFERENCES. One reference MUST be from course reading. One reference must come from an outside book or article. The third reference may come from either.

5.MAKE SURE TO INCLUDE YOUR FIELD NOTES AND YOUR INTERVIEW MATERIALS WITH YOUR PAPER.

6.Your essay MUST, MUST, MUST include an intersectional analysis of how CULTURE, RACE, GENDER, and CLASS have played a role in the life and/or work of the artist(s) or in the performance(s) you are studying.

 STRUCTURING AN ACADEMIC ARGUMENT

The ability to write an academic argument is a skill that all college students must master. An academic argument (as opposed to other kinds of arguments) is a formally structured discussion designed to a) INVESTIGATE a topic b) PERSUADE readers/audiences that the author’s interpretation of that topic is the best way to understand that topic. It is organized using a) a THESIS CLAIM or assertion about the topic b) EVIDENCE that supports that thesis claim and c) ANALYSIS or INTERPRETATION of that evidence that serves to PROVE that the THESIS CLAIM is valid.  (Analysis is the process of identifying and separating key elements from a whole and subjecting those elements to thoughtful interpretation)  

1. Social science essays generally use the following segments to structure their arguments. They are described in detail in the rest of this document:

• INTRODUCTION: This is a presentation of your thesis, topic, and context of research.
• LITERATURE REVIEW :Overview of existing research. (This is a good place to discuss your references)
• METHODOLOGY:This is a description of how you conducted your research.
• DATA/RESULTS :This is the data produced by your research.In this paper, your data will summarize the content of your research, relatively free of your interpretation.
• ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION: This is your interpretation of your data that expands upon and explains your thesis. (This must include an analysis of two of the following: race/class/gender
• CONCLUSION: This will give an overview of the paper, demonstrate how you proved your thesis and what you learned from your paper.

Note:  SUB-HEADINGS: For clarity, you may wish to provide descriptive sub-headings for each segment of the essay listed above. You may also wish to replace conventional sub-headings with original, creative ones.

ETHNOGRAPHIC ESSAY STRUCTURE WITH PARAGRAPH LENGTH SUGGESTIONS

 

1. INTRODUCTION (1-2 Paragraphs)
2. Introduce your interview participant (topic)
3. Present a THESIS statement about your research. A thesis is what you claim about your topic. This is one of the most important parts of your essay. A THESIS IS A CLEARLY-STATED, CONVINCING CLAIM THAT ANCHORS AND ADVANCES YOUR ARGUMENT! (Acronym CCCCAAAA)
4. A COMPLETE THESIS MUST INCLUDE BOTH A CLAIM AND AN EXPLANATION OF WHY THAT CLAIM IS TRUE! A claim without an explanation is simply an observation or an opinion. Always remember that the thesis is the foundation of your paper. Without a clear thesis, it is difficult for you build an argument in the rest of your paper. Y= an Explanation of WHY your thesis is Valid and/or HOW your thesis manifests itself.

 

A useful thesis formula is: I claim X because of Y.

 

HINT: Think of a Research Question: If you are having trouble coming up with a thesis, remember that a thesis is almost always an answer to a research question about your topic. The research question is usually a “Why” or “How” Question. Begin by writing questions about your topic. Then, answer those questions. Your most interesting answer to one of those questions will be your thesis.

4. LITERATURE REVIEW (1-2 Paragraphs) Summarize your three academic references and how they relate to your research. Please us APA citation style.
5. METHODOLOGY (1-2 Paragraphs) Describe why you chose your subject, how you conducted your research, and why you chose to conduct it in that manner. Address the strengths and weakness of your approach.
6. DATA/RESULTS (2-4 Paragraphs)
7. Include a list of your questions
8. Give an Overview in paragraph form of what your interview participants told you in response to your questions. Summarize significant portions of the interview. While you may use quotations here, you may want to save your most significant quotations or examples for your analysis.

 

5. ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION (3-6 paragraphs)
6. Identify three or four themes/supporting points – intriguing concepts, ideas, or patterns – that emerged during the interview
7. Analyze and interpret each theme using examples from the interview.

OR

1. For each interview participant Identify two or three themes/supporting points – intriguing concepts, ideas, or patterns – that emerged during the interview. That means you will have a total of FOUR TO SIX THEMES/PARAGRAPHS for two interviews.

1. Analyze and interpret each theme using examples from the interview.

 

Note: You may want to use the following Structure and Acronym for EACH theme:

For each theme/supporting point, write one or two paragraphs that includes the following

PRESENT S.E.E.S. (Statement. Evidence. Explanation. Significance)

1. (State the main claim of your theme/supporting point,.)
2. Evidence (Present Examples, Quotations, or both from your interview.)
3. Explanation/Interpretation/Analysis (Explain how Evidence proves the Statement)
4. Significance (Explain the significance of the theme by explaining how it proves the Thesis of the paper)

 

6. CONCLUSION (1-2 Paragraphs) Explain what you learned from doing the interview and summarize how your data demonstrated the validity of your thesis.