Islam Participant Observation

Islam Participant Observation

Participant Observation Assignment Cultural Anthropologists have long used participant observation as their primary means of coming to understand a particular culture. Observing the actual behaviors of people brings an element of scientific objectivity while participating in cultural activities allows the anthropologist to experience what it feels like to be a !Kung, Yanomamo, or Tiv. Most people are receptive to anthropologists who seem to be generally interested in interacting with them. To give you a small taste of what it is like to observe a culture from the inside, you are being asked to select a cultural event to both observe and participate in to the degree that that is possible. The event should be something that has cultural significance for those participating and should not be a performance put on solely for an audience. Possible events include observing a religious gathering such as an Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, or Islamic gathering. These kinds of events are the most common and easiest to observe. You may attend other cultural gatherings that are significant for those participating and not part of a festival performance. The paper is composed of two components: the description and the analysis. The description is 3-4 pages. It includes the key elements of the event, such as the setting, those participating, symbols used, and the key ritual behaviors that the participants share in. Since it is impossible to extensively describe what you will observe in 3-4 pages, focus on those elements that are most striking and important to fostering the mood and beliefs you sense being experienced. Do not write about your feelings. Focus on what you sense is key to the experience of those who are members of the group. The second section is a 2 page analysis of what you observed. Why did people behave the way they did? What contributed to this being a meaningful and coherent experience for those participating? What moods and beliefs were reinforced by the use of the various elements of the ritual? You do not need to know the ultimate answers to these questions. You are only being asked to make an informed, intelligent guess as to what the ritual means and why. Please choose an event that you have never attended before and that is not part of your own cultural tradition. This will allow you to note cultural elements that you might take for granted if they are familiar to you. Have fun and be wise in your selection so as not to place yourself in danger. It is okay to go with a friend or a classmate. Feel free to use MLA or APA format. Use 12’ New Times Roman or Georgia font and double space with 1” margins. Please attach a cover page with the name of the event, your name, and the date.

Participant Observation Assignment

 

Cultural Anthropologists have long used participant observation as their primary means of coming to understand a particular culture.  Observing the actual behaviors of people brings an element of scientific objectivity while participating in cultural activities allows the anthropologist to experience what it feels like to be a !Kung, Yanomamo, or Tiv.  Most people are receptive to anthropologists who seem to be generally interested in interacting with them.

 

To give you a small taste of what it is like to observe a culture from the inside, you are being asked to select a cultural event to both observe and participate in to the degree that that is possible.  The event should be something that has cultural significance for those participating and should not be a performance put on solely for an audience.  Possible events include observing a religious gathering such as an Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, or Islamic gathering.  These kinds of events are the most common and easiest to observe.  You may attend other cultural gatherings that are significant for those participating and not part of a festival performance.

 

The paper is composed of two components:  the description and the analysis.  The description is 3-4 pages.  It includes the key elements of the event, such as the setting, those participating, symbols used, and the key ritual behaviors that the participants share in.  Since it is impossible to extensively describe what you will observe in 3-4 pages, focus on those elements that are most striking and important to fostering the mood and beliefs you sense being experienced.  Do not write about your feelings.  Focus on what you sense is key to the experience of those who are members of the group.

 

The second section is a 2 page analysis of what you observed.  Why did people behave the way they did?  What contributed to this being a meaningful and coherent experience for those participating?  What moods and beliefs were reinforced by the use of the various elements of the ritual?  You do not need to know the ultimate answers to these questions.  You are only being asked to make an informed, intelligent guess as to what the ritual means and why.

 

Please choose an event that you have never attended before and that is not part of your own cultural tradition.  This will allow you to note cultural elements that you might take for granted if they are familiar to you.  Have fun and be wise in your selection so as not to place yourself in danger.  It is okay to go with a friend or a classmate.

 

Feel free to use MLA or APA format.  Use 12’ New Times Roman or Georgia font and double space with 1” margins.  Please attach a cover page with the name of the event, your name, and the date.

 

I attended the Islam Heritage festival in DC and it was a wonderful experience. My friend and I tagged along together in hopes of not being left out or a fish out of water. When I first arrived it was very quiet and similar to a protest gathering. Although this “protest” was in form of a parade, people were chanting things and holding up banners with Islamic writing on it. I remember clearly reading a banner saying “Love for all and hatred for none.” Once I saw that banner I knew how peaceful and insightful this festival was. After all, everyone was holding up mini United States flags. Which that seemed kind of odd. In a scenario where you are celebrating your own Muslim heritage, everyone if not almost everyone is waving around an American Flag. Not once did I see a Iranian or Iraqi or any other Muslim countries flag. I remember seeing car pulling a wagon in the back saying “welcome to the essence of Islam.” The wagon had the same slogan that appeared to be everywhere “love for all hatred for none’ and it had a man in the back selling books on Islam. Now whether he was selling Qurans or not is beyond me. It seems like there were so many people of so many different ages and so many different colors. I also noticed that many of the women (and young girls) there had a wrap around their head similar to a Turbin yet resembled more of what people of african tribes wear on their heads. To my ignorance I was going to ask a young woman around my age why she was wearing that, until my friend pointed out that it is part of their tradition. He explained how women tend to hide their natural beauty for their husbands, im not sure if that was a valid explanation but it sounds about right.

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