The Field as Habitus: Reflections on Inner and Outer Dialogue
Author(s)
Clark, David A.
Abstract
While Clifford (1997) regards fieldwork as a key marker of the discipline of anthropology itself, notions concerning fieldwork have undergone considerable change over the last decades. This paper elaborates on Clifford’s suggestion that fieldwork practice constitutes what Bourdieu terms as habitus and examines some of the key elements of what that practice might be. The discussion interweaves a theoretical analysis with descriptions of my own thought processes prior to fieldwork and of what happened once I entered the field. The paper also seeks to be self-reflexive and examines some of the internal dialogue that takes place as a result of fieldwork. Bourdieu (1977) describes habitus in terms of shared pre-dispositions to act in a certain manner under certain circumstances. Habitus essentially refers to a set of practices that become habitual and engaged upon without any great deal of prior reflection. This paper focuses on certain common practices in fieldwork that are virtually taken-for-granted, but ought to be spelled out in order to demonstrate how much part of the ‘fieldwork habitus’ they have actually become.
