Ethnography is a formal process of intuitive understanding something people are keen on. The ethnographers observe, record, and describe social relations in written. Their primary sources of data are questions, conversations, notes, interpretation of conventional signs, and spending time in the environment they aim to investigate. The difference between ethnographers work and routine observation lies in the formalization of data collecting and interpreting process. Writing the notes is the primary tool of the ethnographer, as further the ethnography assumes the systematization of experience.
In a simplified form, ethnographical methods can be identified as involvement in the field in every possible way. They assume walking, driving, or flying – all kinds of interaction with the researched society. The leading ethnographers aim is to record the process of events being the part of them. The essential data collecting method of ethnography is fieldwork. It includes but is not limited to both participant and non-participant advertence, interviews, and so on. Writing is an essential part of the method for the ethnographer. Typically, ethnography results in report production in terms of a concrete situation. Therefore, the importance of documenting and journaling is incredibly high and quite noticeable. The final report brings together the whole conveyed study, including documentary evidence, conversations, observations of practices, rules, behaviors, and beliefs. Writing reflects an ethnographers vision of the studied social environment.
Ethnography studies the issues that need a solution collecting data from different sources in multiple ways. Thorough research of the situation assumes plunging in it to observe, interact, and document. Ethnography aims to provide the fullest possible picture of the social environment. Therefore, using multiple data sources and spending much time in the field, research and writing are equally important. Hence, if I want to apply ethnography in my place, I will approach social media sources (both official ones and forums as they provide an opportunity of virtual participant observation of the current social and behavioral environment). I will also use interviews and other kinds of communication and physical observation, putting down the notes that might be incorporated into my final ethnographic work.
The ethnographic approach usually emphasizes the ethnographers first-hand experiences. The researchers regularly write themselves into the field notes, being active and reflexive participants of the studied process. The research assumes the ethnographers thorough analysis and description. The ethnographer is usually focused on the naturally occurring data: it is a context but not artificial manufacturing or reconstructing, which is essential. The critical approach in ethnography is the use of a variety of methods. The ethnographer should resort to every available data source, including spontaneous and systematically planned interviews, keeping notes of observations, generating visual data, and documentary evidence analysis.
The ethnographic passage about Hobart captures the readers attention due to its tone and structure. It is not cold, official, dead, restrained, or estranged. It is a combination of a live speech, subtle humor with a touch of philosophy, and attention to detail. The author makes his readers feel like witnessing, and experiencing the described situation themselves, being involved in them. The passages purpose is to underline that even the most routine, trivial, and unremarkable case might be insightful from the point of view of social interest. Any experience teaches us to be social to a certain extent. Therefore, all the people are intuitively able to follow the path of ethnographical study, as they are, in fact, familiar with the ways social investigations are conducted.