Reading Ethnography

In my own words, I would define a subculture as a group of people who all have one main thing in common, whether it is a hobby, an occupation or something else. From this one commonality it is believed that they will develop their own lingo, traditions and even a group perspective. Customers of the coffee shop clearly have their own lingo. Some high school students refer to the Hopkinton Gourmet as the “Gourm’ (Casassa B34).” Lingoes that are not specific to the Hopkinton coffee shop customers but rather are familiar to coffee drinkers in general are “Coffee, mostly black (Casassa B33)…” and “Small cup, one cream, one sugar (Casassa B33)….” This leads me to think that the Hopkinton Gourmet clients are particular subdivision of the large coffee-drinking American subculture. Apart from their obvious lingo—bong, pipe, glassware-- people who are affiliated with the head shop clearly share many group perspectives. “The Hempest seeks to appeal to this range of customers, from the legalization activist, to the vegetarian naturalist, to the counter-culturally fashionable teenager (Dudley B42).”

Dudley’s essay was looking at the subculture of head shops. Or at least this is what I hope, because if it was analyzing the people who shop at them then I do not feel like it dug deep enough. One feature of the form as Ballenger describes it requires that the author “focus[es] on groups of people who identify themselves as group members (373).” I don’t feel that Dudley’s paper was written about people, but rather head shops in general.

However, the head shop essay fits the motive for writing ethnography. “Essentially, the goal of such articles and programs is to show how things work in particular social context (Ballenger 372)…” Dudley’s essay works precisely to explain how head shops survive in conservative environments where marijuana laws are becoming increasingly concise and even somewhat stricter on hemp sales. This particular motive is not as readily applicable to Casassa’s writing. If you take a step back however, the final paragraph ties the continued existence of the small coffee shop to the fact that “There exists a certain ritualism here. Everyone has their own little niche (Casassa B36).” He attributes the stores success to its importance in her subjects’ daily routine.

I am actually jealous of Casassa’s ethnography topic. Ballenger advises not to choose a subculture you are a part of. She technically adheres to this advice since after all she is not a customer in the coffee shop. However, since she is a coffee shop employee, she has immediate access and can observe her subjects day in and day out. She has a topic that she is truly familiar with although she isn’t specifically a part of it.

I love “The Coffee Shop” essay. My dad always uses the term “creatures of habit,” and I definitely am one. This essay struck home for me in more ways than just that however, especially when I’m a little homesick for the things I used to do daily. It is strange how things don’t seem inconvenient once you’ve made them a habit. Originally, one might wish that someone would just have their coffee waiting on their desk for them at work or school; however, once the coffee shop stop is made routine, it becomes internalized and does not seem so difficult. In fact, it becomes the norm and almost comforting for that matter. After a long day of work Casassa says she feels “Hectic, exhausting, comfortable, familiar… just right (B35).” I think that it is implied that Casassa feels a bond with the subjects she is writing about. They all get a sense of comfort from the routine of being in the coffee shop each day. I don’t feel that Dudley expressed his opinion on head shops. I feel like he stays very mutual even though Ballenger says it is acceptable and even natural to be subjective when writing about a subculture (374).

Both authors use incredible detail when they are setting the scene for the reader. I feel like I could recreate the store layout of The Hempest solely based on the information he provided in the reading. “The first case, which is quickly seen as one enters the store, holds small jewelry, pins, rings and earrings—all of which are socially and legally accepted items. The more controversial merchandise, the glassware pipes and bongs, is somewhat hidden from plain view and can only be discovered by one who walks around the store (Dudley B42).” The environment of the subculture is very important since the “bulk of the research takes place in the natural settings where group members gather (Ballenger 373).” I enjoyed the way Casassa depicted the “intimate” coffee shop and its very crammed décor. “The coffee-grinding machine rests inches away from the sink and the shiny steel brewers crowd the neatly stacked supply of cups.” She shows that the store is cozily cramped without actually saying it. “Newly delivered newspapers slouch patiently against the wall waiting to reveal their stories, or to become drenched with spilled cappuccinos (Casassa B31).” I love the way she personifies the newspapers so that the reader can imagine the way they are sloping lethargically into the wall. I think that the way Casassa interwove her descriptions of the store into her story made for more enjoyable reading. In fact, I enjoyed Casassa’s piece more than Dudley’s overall because I felt like it was more of a story and less of a paper.