• Look at this list of the most profitable
films from this year and consider the
following questions…
• What do all these movies have in
common?
• What kinds of people are the stars of
these movies?
• What kinds of movies don’t you see?
• What can these films tell us about
what our culture values?
• On a sheet of paper, write 3
conclusions.
We’re going to take some notes. Later in the week and into next week,
you’ll be writing your own ethnography.
Ethnography is the scientific description of people and
their cultures
• ethno= ethnic (as in culture)
• graph= writing
• Therefore, ethnography=writing about culture
We are expanding this definition
to include subcultures!
A subculture is the culture within a culture
• This could be something large, such as Star Wars superfans all over
the country or very small, such as one establishment.
• Example cultures: American, Indian, French, Hindu, Chinese,
American South, Arab, Chilean
• Example subcultures: Trekkies, the New York City folk music scene,
Tumblr users, South-Central Los Angeles gang culture, the culture of
Ray’s Auto Shop, Target employee culture, the student culture at
Foundations Academy, NFL players, Wall Street billionaires, Hawaii
homeless people…
Every culture (or subculture) has elements that make
them unique (otherwise, we would all be identical!)
A few of those elements are:
• Dress
• Language
• Rituals
• Social Structure
How does a culture clothe themselves?
How does a culture speak? What unique words do they
use (slang/jargon)? How do they use their speech?
Subculture A
Subculture B
Subculture C
Subculture D
Subculture E
Nuka-Cola
V.A.T.S.
Stealth Boy
NCR
Panel
Zip ribbon
Bleed
Splash page
Game breaker
G.O.A.T.
Facilitator
Rim-racker
Bigwigs
Push black
Synergy
Margins
Intelligent
Residual
K-2
EVP
What common practices does a culture participate in?
• These rituals could be actual rituals such as a Muslim person
praying 5 times a day, a Christian person going to church on
Sunday, or , a Jewish person going to synagogue on Friday.
• These rituals may not be what you think of as “rituals” at
first. A sports team holds practice. A family eats dinner
together. Gamers go to midnight releases. A sorority holds a
party. A school has a daily assembly.
Every culture has a different social structure- how
power is organized and how people interact.
• Who’s in charge?
• Who’s “the low man on the totem pole?”
• Is there a rigid social structure or a loose social structure?
• Do the different social levels interact? How so?
Brainstorm 5 cultures or subcultures that you might
want to do your ethnography on.
• Perhaps you’re a part of that culture.
• Perhaps you just find that culture interesting.
In your ethnography notes, guess what America’s top
5 most popular sports are—in order of popularity.
5. (5th most popular)
4.
3.
2.
1. (Most popular sport in America)
Level One: People are interested in one another’s business.
Level Two: In Western cultures, society frowns on seeking out information on others
and calls it “gossip.”
Level Three: Americans actively seek out juicy information on others and frequently
feel left out if they don’t know it.
Level Four: At Arvada West High School, students frequently use social media such as
Snapchat and Instagram to spread gossip.
Level Five: At Arvada West High School, one of the main avenues of social importance
is the use of social media to spread gossip. Those who spread it are desirable and friendship
is in demand.
Level Six: Kim slips her phone out of her bag quickly between classes. Her first stop is
through Snapchat, then Instagram, and finally onto Yik Yak. She’s upset that she had to sit
all the way through Mr. Parriot’s senior Economics class before she could see what exactly
her friend Becky had sent her about Jeff.
Decide what culture or subculture you are going to
write your ethnography about.
On your notecard…
Name one unique piece of dress you can discuss.
Name one unique ritual you can discuss.
Name one unique piece of language you can discuss.
Name one unique aspect of the social structure you
can discuss.