Reading Response #3

Andrea Casassa’s “The Coffee Shop” and Matthew Dudley’s “The Dope on Head Shops” both follow Ballenger’s idea of an ethnography. Both of these essays are focused on close observations made over time. Casassa did not just walk into this coffee house, sit down, order a coffee, and decide to write about the place. It was a place that she had worked in and spent much of her time in. She had been there for a long period of time which she proves as she has customer’s orders memorized and ready for them when they arrive such as Martha’s order on page B33. She comments, “When one expected patron fails to visit, the equilibrium of the store wavers, not dramatically but noticeably” (B35). This is something that one could only notice if they spent enough time in there to even expect the “regulars”. Furthemore, Dudley also had to have spent a good amount of time in this “head shop” in order to describe it in such detail. He is very precise about the layout of the store and recalls exact details. Dudley states, “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 acceptable items” (B42). He then goes on to tell us that the pipes and bongs are “somewhat hidden from plain view and can only be discovered by one who walks around the store” proving that he has many times walked around this store in order to come across this conclusion (B42). In addition, Ballenger’s form for an ethnography requires that most of the research be done in the actual setting. In Casassa’s essay, all of her research is done in the coffee shop. She observes and writes. She takes everything from that one setting. Dudley’s essay, on the other hand, does have some research from outside sources. While the majority of the information does come from witnessing first hand this “head shop”, he also brings in other resources in order to give the reader a background on head shops. On page B39, he quotes from “The Haight-Ashbury” in order to offer extra information to the reader. This gives his essay a feel somewhat similar to that of a discovery essay or a research paper. Both writers also follow the form of an ethnography by looking closely at just a few in order to learn about the whole. Casassa focuses on many different individuals in order to explain the coffee shop as a whole. She gives details about each customer. Dudley also uses this technique. He focuses in on a few customers at the shop in order to create a feel for what the overall experience is like. He even goes so far as to get quotes from shoppers such as Peter Wetherbee on page B41. By giving the reader a deeper look into a few people’s lives and perspectives, he is able to offer a sense of what the entirety of the shop feels and looks like.

I hope to be able to form an essay following Ballenger’s rules as these two authors have done. By reading their writing, I am able to see what I need to look for when preparing to write my ethnography. I am not sure yet what I will be writing about; however, I know it needs to be a subject that completely has my attention. It needs to be something that causes me to consider every little detail in order to form the whole. I think it is important to get most of my research from the setting I choose and to not do too much outside researching. I do not want my paper to end up sounding like a discovery essay, so I must be careful in keeping it in line with Ballenger’s form for the ethnography.