I don't really have a particular person or story about someone in my family that is the main story or funny relatives. My family is really big so a lot of stories are passed around orally. I have sort of made the conclusion that the relatives I never got to meet had their fare share of crazy moments. I do remember one, my Aunts always talk about my Great Aunt Mary always walking around the kitchen cooking in her bra. That was the first thing that came to my mind when this assignment was given, even though it isn't a real elaborate story.
Another joke we have in our family is about my grandma. She could easily win the funniest grandma award. We always joke about how she has everything in her house, and if it's not there, it's probably in her purse. When I was little, about 9, we took a family trip to the movies and I got there late. So she pulled out hot chocolate from her purse and said "go mix it with water from the fountain so you have something to drink!" And she always has some sort of little "goody" as she says, to snack on, such as gummy bears, nuts, and M&Ms.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Blog 10
I think I am going to break my paper up into headings. A few ideas are stereotypes, beliefs, effects on undergrads, the community, services CRU provides outside of Ball state, what I have gotten from being a part of CRU, and a few interviews. I plan on starting to mini-ethnography with a bit of an introduction to what I have been doing, how I approached things, and a general explanation about the effect it has had on me as well as where I fit in with the community. I don't have a very specific outline or order of my paper. I am hoping that as I write one topic will lead me to the next. I don't think the entire paper will be chronological more topical. I will try to make the first topic more broad and continue to get more into detail as I progress through the paper. To conclude the piece I am going to explain where I started and where I ended in the sub culture of CRU and religion. Right now that is one of the questions I cannot answer because I have so much new, confusing information and opinions to consider.I chose to put my final paper in more of a topic format because in my opinion I think it would be difficult to explain in chronological order. I have done more research and observing than I have interacting with people enough to tell a story.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Glossary of Terms
Worship; a time of worship. ex] singing
Quiet time; a time alone with God and/or your bible
Praise
Prayer
Sin; an act of sin. something ungodly or wrong.
Devotionals; reading a specific area of the bible and writing what you learned & what it means
Saved; to be saved. asking for forgiveness of sins to go to heaven
Altar; a place of sacrifice in a church or chapel
Lent; 40 days of sacrifice
Testimony
Cross; the most important christian symbol
Crucifixion- when Jesus was put to death on the cross
Heaven; the place where God lives
Preacher; a person who delivers a sermon
Sermon; talk given in church about a spiritual topic
Satan; the devil
Temptation
Ten Commandments
Quiet time; a time alone with God and/or your bible
Praise
Prayer
Sin; an act of sin. something ungodly or wrong.
Devotionals; reading a specific area of the bible and writing what you learned & what it means
Saved; to be saved. asking for forgiveness of sins to go to heaven
Altar; a place of sacrifice in a church or chapel
Lent; 40 days of sacrifice
Testimony
Cross; the most important christian symbol
Crucifixion- when Jesus was put to death on the cross
Heaven; the place where God lives
Preacher; a person who delivers a sermon
Sermon; talk given in church about a spiritual topic
Satan; the devil
Temptation
Ten Commandments
Thursday, March 19, 2009
American Tongues
(Question 1): This research project was done in the 1986. If you were to re-do this project today, at the end of the first decade of the 21st century, what might you as a researcher do differently? What would you do the same?
They did a good job of interviewing and showing people in public situations. Something I would do different is showing other people in public. It seemed as if they used the same men over and over in the first clip to represent the public. If it was the 21st century, I would obviously use more update clothes and scenes.
(Question 2): What are some of the flaws with the study? Are there any groups that are under-represented? Over-represented? How might you make the study more appealing to an audience (visually, instructionally, etc?)
Thinking back on the videos, they mainly talked about southern accents. I remember them mentioning other accents such as new york or Manhattan only a few times. I think they could have used more examples showing how people talk rather than explaining it. They also should have had more of a variety.
(Question 3): In your opinion (and based on some of the things discussed in the clips), how important is language in terms of how we perceive others? What is revealed (or others think is revealed) about us when we talk?
I think a lot of people unfortunately think that if you have a VERY strong southern accent their education level might be lower. The last clip also said that having an Inner city Boston accent made woman assume he was Italian and like him, and men think he was from the city and would "pull a gun or shank on him".
They did a good job of interviewing and showing people in public situations. Something I would do different is showing other people in public. It seemed as if they used the same men over and over in the first clip to represent the public. If it was the 21st century, I would obviously use more update clothes and scenes.
(Question 2): What are some of the flaws with the study? Are there any groups that are under-represented? Over-represented? How might you make the study more appealing to an audience (visually, instructionally, etc?)
Thinking back on the videos, they mainly talked about southern accents. I remember them mentioning other accents such as new york or Manhattan only a few times. I think they could have used more examples showing how people talk rather than explaining it. They also should have had more of a variety.
(Question 3): In your opinion (and based on some of the things discussed in the clips), how important is language in terms of how we perceive others? What is revealed (or others think is revealed) about us when we talk?
I think a lot of people unfortunately think that if you have a VERY strong southern accent their education level might be lower. The last clip also said that having an Inner city Boston accent made woman assume he was Italian and like him, and men think he was from the city and would "pull a gun or shank on him".
In Class Questions, Page 306
1. In the scene of my ethnography I am on the edge of being an outsider and an insider. When I have done interviews with my informants I understand what they are saying. When speaking with an outsider I understand the stereotypes because I as well believe some of them. When speaking with an insider I understand because I have been a part of many youth groups.
2. I don't think that anything said really influences any fixed positions as it does subjective positions. The way someone looks at something can be somewhat changed after hearing opinions of others, testimonies, becoming a part of the scene, and supporting evidence in research. Between me and my informant, our relationship is very close to equal; neither one has much more power than the other. The only more power my informant may have is when talking about being completely submerged in the religious culture on campus, because I am only involved at times.
3. When I speak to a lot of my informants they are very confident in their responses, their opinions, beliefs, and just the general way they are speaking about the topic. Their voices are very powerful and almost in a persuasive tone hoping to reel me into their beliefs. The only gap I do see at times is the fact that some informants are very closed-minded, not willing to look at any other perspective and try to understand.
2. I don't think that anything said really influences any fixed positions as it does subjective positions. The way someone looks at something can be somewhat changed after hearing opinions of others, testimonies, becoming a part of the scene, and supporting evidence in research. Between me and my informant, our relationship is very close to equal; neither one has much more power than the other. The only more power my informant may have is when talking about being completely submerged in the religious culture on campus, because I am only involved at times.
3. When I speak to a lot of my informants they are very confident in their responses, their opinions, beliefs, and just the general way they are speaking about the topic. Their voices are very powerful and almost in a persuasive tone hoping to reel me into their beliefs. The only gap I do see at times is the fact that some informants are very closed-minded, not willing to look at any other perspective and try to understand.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Posting 9
So far in my research the hardest thing is to not be bias or stereotypical. I have been around Christians of all types my whole life and have already formed my general opinion. I have heard so many opinions for other people that I accept, but I am trying to write my paper as if this is my first time in a christian/religious environment. The easiest thing in my research is learning about the statistics I have learned. For example, reading about a research done proving that religious groups have a positive effect on the lifestyle of an undergrad. I think that is the easiest for me because it is something I agree with, and has supporting evidence. If i could start over I don't know how much I would change. I have done a good job of being a part of several different religious groups, able to compare their routines. Keeping this blog has really helped me organize my thoughts. Writing here every week has made me think harder about where I am and what directions I need to be headed in. This blog will help me in my finished ethnography in finding the main points I dealt with.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
In Class Questions
1. My readers will care about this issue because it is such a big part of how things are run in this country. For example, wanting to take "under God" out of the pledge of allegiance or being allowed to pray in school. Religion is something many people stereotype because they don't understand it and don't understand the similarities between all religions and each one's purpose.
2. My readers will want to know statistics, proven facts through research, interview answers, and testimonies. I can give the reader a list of statistics but I can not change their beliefs without proven research to support them. I think the one thing most readers will be interested in is the impact religion has on undergraduates.
3. My readers already know the general information of Christian beliefs; you go to church on Sunday, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, prayer, being a good person etc. They also know some of the more common stereotypes such as Christians being hypocrites or goody-goodys.
4. I want my readers to finish searching through my research and come out with a better understanding of religion. I want their stereotypes to change.I want my readers to look at religion as what someone uses as a positive distraction in life to full fill their needs in the sense of knowing there's a high power of some kind, having someone/something to rely on in times of need, something to keep them from making bad lifestyle choices. It is more than just a belief in something, it's a lifestyle change.
5. I feel like the stereotypes will be the hardest to persuade my reader to change. After my 8 weeks of research my feelings have changed very little. I have had experiences that have shaped my stereotypical beliefs and that makes it harder for me to think different.
6. My readers will use my writing to learn and understand as well as use it for a reference to another research.
2. My readers will want to know statistics, proven facts through research, interview answers, and testimonies. I can give the reader a list of statistics but I can not change their beliefs without proven research to support them. I think the one thing most readers will be interested in is the impact religion has on undergraduates.
3. My readers already know the general information of Christian beliefs; you go to church on Sunday, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, prayer, being a good person etc. They also know some of the more common stereotypes such as Christians being hypocrites or goody-goodys.
4. I want my readers to finish searching through my research and come out with a better understanding of religion. I want their stereotypes to change.I want my readers to look at religion as what someone uses as a positive distraction in life to full fill their needs in the sense of knowing there's a high power of some kind, having someone/something to rely on in times of need, something to keep them from making bad lifestyle choices. It is more than just a belief in something, it's a lifestyle change.
5. I feel like the stereotypes will be the hardest to persuade my reader to change. After my 8 weeks of research my feelings have changed very little. I have had experiences that have shaped my stereotypical beliefs and that makes it harder for me to think different.
6. My readers will use my writing to learn and understand as well as use it for a reference to another research.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Posting 8
Through my research the main theme I have seen is the effects religion has on undergrads on campus. I don't want to sound stereotypical, but while speaking with people involved in CRU, the majority are focused students filling their time with healthy and safe activities. They use religion as a somewhat of a positive distraction from negative choices. Coming into this project I felt in the middle of an insider and an outsider. I still feel like I am in the same position, but am somewhat more informed, and gained more knowledge about the relationship between religion, values, and lifestyles from different angels. I almost feel more confused because there are so many views and theories I have never thought about or let alone looked at. I think that I have become more open minded. After researching this topic for almost eight weeks, I feel like there will never be a definite answer to how people look at and feel about religious views, or how the effect people.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Blog 8
A main theme I see through search I see a theme in why people do and don't attend bible study, as well as how people in bible studies are looked at. Going into this project as an insider, but an outsider to CRU I thought the majority of outsiders would view Christians and members of CRU as goody-goodys, no fun, and bible pushers. Come to find out through research the majority of people see Christians as good and nice people, while there are few with a negative opinion. Most people also commented they don't attend CRU simply because it's not their "thing", are too busy, would like to but never have; no one commented that they thought people in CRU were bad people in any way. Through the field site I have noticed people with all different beliefs, interpretations, and hobbies that attend CRU. Some people are very strong believers and are careful with their words and actions where other people still believe but are more lenient in what they do such as parties. Now that I have been working on this project for so long I feel I have learned more about the general opinion of Christians, mainly in a college campus setting. I thought I have always been an insider, but I have learned that being an insider in a bible study group is much different from a small high school to a large college campus. I think I was more of an outsider than I realized and have learned a lot of things about the thoughts and opinions of others on this topic.
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