Language and Power: An Ethnographic Analysis of a Southern Baptist Family
Resources should include textbook content. Textbook content should be available online
One is living language: an introduction to linguistic anthropology (2012) by Laura Ahearn (also available in 2nd edition)
Another book is portraits of "The whiteman": linguistic play and cultural symbols among The western Apache (1979) by Keith basso
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^ Information on Description for your Essays• context - What, in addition to the observed experience, do outsiders need to know to fully understand what's happening in this experience?
o Example: Maybe the context of the elementary school observation is that funding has just been cut and students, teachers, and students are working together to write a letter to the school board. Or maybe the teacher is a substitute that day, and maybe the substitute is stricter than the students' teacher. Try to go beyond the obvious here to gain a deeper understanding of what is behind the event you are observing. All of this will help your analysis of how language is being used.
For the descriptive report, you will also need to discuss the norms you observed around language use in your conclusion.
For your final paper for this course, you will need to do a similar (more in-depth) project, but you need to do multiple observations. This could be your first observation for the final paper if you end up participating with a group you can continue to
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funding has just been cut and students, teachers, and students are working together to write a letter to the school board. Or maybe the teacher is a substitute that day, and maybe the substitute is stricter than the students' teacher. Try to go beyond the obvious here to gain a deeper understanding of what is behind the event you are observing. All of this will help your analysis of how language is being used.
For the descriptive report, you will also need to discuss the norms you observed around language use in your conclusion.
For your final paper for this course, you will need to do a similar (more in-depth) project, but you need to do multiple observations. This could be your first observation for the final paper if you end up participating with a group you can continue to interact with.
Be sure to use pseudonyms for all names and places. Readers should not be able to identify the participants after reading your report.
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participate in. Make sure the group/event/experience you choose has a lot of social interaction. You will need to be able to talk to the people you are observing. If you can, ask for permission to record the event. If you can't record the event, take notes. Be sure to interview some of the participants as well (an interview can be informally asking some questions at various points in the activity). Then write a description of your observations in which you describe the: setting, participants, topics, goals, and context of the event. For the final essay, you will need to make an argument about how language is being used in the group, so you should pay attention to that throughout. Here are details about each descriptive component with an example of a face-to-face classroom:
• setting - Where did the experience take place? Give a basic description of the place.
o Example: Describe the school, the neighborhood it was located in, and the specific room or rooms you did participant-observation in.
• participants - Who was involved and what was their role? Give a basic description of each
For our course, we cannot accomplish the full anthropological method: ethnography. Ethnography involves long-term immersion into a group, and we only have a few weeks. However, we will be using some ethnographic methods including participant-observation and interviewing for the final paper.
For your first assignment for this course, you must complete an ethnographic-style description of a speech event. As it says on the assignment sheet, a speech event may be formal or informal. To complete the report, you will need to become a Participant-Observer and then write about your observations. Your assignment is to write a descriptive report in which you thoroughly describe a social experience you observed and participated in. For this assignment, choose a social experience (ex: an office where you work, or a student group on campus, or a religious organization) to observe and participate in. Make sure the group/event/experience you choose has a lot of social interaction. You will need to be able to talk to the people you are observing. If you can, ask for permission to record the event. If you can't record the event, take notes. Be sure to interview some of the participants as well (an interview can be
Anth 207 Linguistic Anthropology Ethnographic Analysis Your assignment is to write an essay in which you describe a linguistic interaction and analyze it according to some theoretical terms you learned in this course. (Do not write a book report or an opinion piece). In order to write the essay, you must join a group as a participant observer and attend 2-3 times. Additionally, you should interview (this can be formal or informal) at least one participant that you observed. For your essay, you need to write a description of the group you observed (including the setting, participants, context, and goals). In addition, you must analyze the language and culture within the group. The language used during your observations is the data that you will analyze. If possible, ask to record the interactions. When it is not possible to record, take notes of the interactions you observe. Ask the participants to sign the Permission Form before you start your observations. Never record without having signed permission. Get in touch with me if you have any questions about this. For your analysis, choose one theoretical topic from our course to focus on. The theoretical topics are listed for each week on the syllabus. Be sure to use pseudonyms for all names and places. Readers should not be able to identify the participants after reading your report. Keep in mind that the focus in linguistic anthropology is on what language can show us about the relationships between people, not “a language” by itself. Your essay should include: • a title • headings throughout the body of the essay indicating the components listed below (where appropriate) • an introduction (introduce the theoretical focus, your overall argument/main point about language and culture in the group) • a section defining the analytical terms you use • W-Credit Students only: a literature review section • an ethnographic description (including sections titled setting, participants, topics, context, goals) from your participant observations • a section of analysis that discusses the role of language and culture using terminology from the course • a conclusion • a reference page formatted using MLA style • an appendix which includes a short version of the transcript (an example is posted in Canvas) Sources and Citations: Any outside sources you use must be scholarly anthropological sources. Use in-text citations in MLA style for all summarized, paraphrased, and quoted information (or a different style such as APA or CMS; include a note on your paper if you are using one of these). There are MLA resources posted in Canvas. Do not use Wikipedia. • Anth 207: Include a minimum of two sources, at least one of which may be a course reading. • Anth 207W: Include a minimum of four sources, at least one of which may be a course reading. Length and Formatting: Anth 207: 5-7 pages (not including the reference page or the appendix), 12-point font, doublespaced, 1-inch margins. Anth 207W: 10-12 pages (not including the reference page or the appendix), 12-point font, double-spaced, 1-inch margins. Due Dates: Anth 207 • Turn in a paper copy of your completed essay on 12/4 at the beginning of class. Anth 207W • Turn in a paper copy of your essay draft on 11/20 at the beginning of class. This should not be a “rough draft,” but instead an essay that you have already revised and edited on your own. 5% per day will be deducted from the final essay grade for each day the essay is submitted late for feedback. • After receiving my feedback, turn in a paper copy of your revised essay on 12/4 at the beginning of class. Of course, your revisions should be based on my feedback and demonstrate growth in your writing. Late Work: Refer to the late policy in the syllabus. Grading: This essay is worth 15% of your overall grade for the course. Your grade will be based on the rubric posted in Canvas.
Language and Power: An Ethnographic Analysis of a Southern Baptist Family
Your Name
Subject and Section
Professor’s Name
December 4, 2019
Language is a crucial element in the daily interaction of individuals in society. It allows people to live together in harmony while also giving the individual the power of individual expression. In this paper, I will present my ethnographic observations of a family who are members of a Southern Baptist religious denomination. I particularly looked into the power relations that exist and are manifested in their language use. I also argued in favor of the theory that language is determined by social reality and in turn, also creates reality. Despite the limited amount of time of being with the family, I could argue that the group, in general, follow certain guidelines in conversing with one another. The details of which I shall discuss in the succeeding sections of this essay.
In order to give the reader an idea of the case in point, I will be presenting the setting where the ‘fieldwork’ was conducted, the participants involved, the topics discussed, and the context that surrounded the conversation.
Methodology
This section expounds on the details of the fieldwork conducted including the setting, participants, and context.
Setting
For the data-gathering, I chose a family of Southern Baptists who shall be referred to as ‘SB Family’ in this paper. The SB family lives in a suburban area located near a community library. The fieldwork was particularly conducted in the dining area of the house where the family lives. I joined the family during dinner for a series of two (2) nights and I wrote down some notes since I was not permitted to record the conversation. The dining area is relatively spacious with a rectangular wooden table and paired with chairs of the same material.
Participants
The participants consist of a family of three (3): a father (Joseph), a mother (Julia), and their son (Jude) who is a friend. The parents are both in their late 40s and they work as ministers and custodians of Southern Baptist Church (SBC) respectively. Jude is a student at a university which is located about twenty (20) kilometers away from their house.
Context
Before the SB family started eating dinner, Joseph asked his son Jude to lead the prayer. As they partake in the food, Joseph and Julia started to ask Jude about his studies. Jude told his parents that he is doing good amidst the increasing number of requirements in his classes. Joseph then reminded Jude of his intermittent attendance to Sunday church services. He shared that some of the ministers and other members of the church have already expressed their concern over Jude’s non-attendance to church services and activities. Jude answered that he was just busy with schoolwork and he promised to make it up in the succeeding church services and assemblies.
Joseph has also told Jude to consider joining the seminary instead so that he would be able to continue serving the Lord and not be exposed to ‘worldly’ things. Joseph particularly raised his concern over the LGBT Pride march which was recently held in Jude’s university. Joseph then lectured on the bible teachings on ...
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