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Anthropologists and their informants: marginality reconsidered

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2009

Moshe Shokeid
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Extract

There has of late been an increasing tendency to challenge the authority of ethnographic texts by criticizing the anthropologist's enterprise during the various stages of his performance—both the collection of data in the field, and the interpretation and presentation of his field notes at home. A better understanding of the process of gathering ethnographic data, and the characteristics of the participants in fieldwork may remove some of its mystique, and contribute to the credibility of the anthropological endeavor. It is often assumed that the anthropologist and in particular his informants are ‘marginal men’ in their respective societies. I intend to examine the applicability of this definition as regards both partners in the implementation of fieldwork, and suggest an alternative characterization.

Type
Research Article
Information
European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie , Volume 29 , Issue 1 , May 1988 , pp. 31 - 47
Copyright
Copyright © Archives Européenes de Sociology 1988

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