The heart and soul of sociocultural anthropology as a discipline is “being there” as a way of gathering the information that gives both texture and validity to our research.  This course is designed as an introduction to the use of ethnographic fieldwork and qualitative methods in the creation of anthropological texts.  The course begins with reflection on the historical and philosophical underpinnings for ethnographic research, moves into a consideration of ethical issues surrounding such research, and consistently embodies a practical approach in which students are introduced to the process of carrying out an extended research project.  Students will be introduced to methods of participant observation, the analysis of fieldnotes, and complementary approaches for gathering qualitative data such as interviewing, oral history, and the use of visual and textual resources as well as ephemera.  Considerable attention will be given to the nature of ethnographic writing and the construction of ethnographies as the outcome of the task of doing ethnography.