Reading Response #3
Both The Coffee Shop and The Dope on Head Shops demonstrated some of Ballenger's features of the form for ethnography, which were effective ways to describe the culture they are studying. In The coffee shop, the author observed as an employee. This was an example of the feature of the form where "the bulk of research takes place in the natural settings where group members are gathered." (Ballenger 373) Casassa was able to observe the coffee drinkers from first hand, behind the register. The small coffee shop, which was not a chain, gave the community a place where they were comfortable. The town is very active in this local coffee shop. There are newspaper articles on the walls of local athletic events and also locals feel free to hang posters. There is a certain atmosphere at this shop that makes it more popular than Starbucks. In The Dope on Head Shops, the author performed research on items bought in these head shops. Dudley showed me that "ethnography is often openly subjective." (Ballanger 374) Throughout the collective data he tried to go deep into what these stores sell, which is mainly hemp products. Back in 1966, when the first head shop was established, they were open about marijuana use with their products. Now there are signs on their products that say for tobacco use only. Although these head shops have changed their focus of advertising, the products remain the same. There are still glass pipes sold, along with hemp clothing and accessories. This essay also uses another feature of the form where "they focus on groups of people who identify themselves as group members." (Ballenger 373) "No person affiliated with The Hempest whom I spoke to would actually call the store a head shop, preferring instead to call it a "hemp clothing botique." These people that Dudley were talking to obviously spend a lot of time in this store and are hesitant to calling it a head shop. I feel as if they think of the store as more than a place that sells marijuana related things and think of it as a natural hemp store. A store where pesticides are not used to make clothing as it is in cotton. There must be some pride in the store.
Both authors enacted what I learned in chapter 10 by actually showing me how an ethnographic essay is written. Casassa wrote the essay by observing the coffee drinking from behind the register. Her evidence provided for her interpretation of the local coffee shop was shown through her observation. She worked there and made observations throughout her day. She showed examples of the different coffee drinkers that come in at different times. Her 7:00 am costumers were eager to get the first cup of coffee, claim their seats, and get the freshest food to start off their mornings. Usually the costumers are in a good mood in the mornings. Whereas at noon, the crowd of students run out the parents and gossip about their late nights on their cell phones. She has a very efficient way of providing evidence because she is there to see everything. Dudley used more of a research method to interpret the culture of head shops and even interviewed some people, which I quoted earlier in my essay. He found that the first head shop was in San Francisco in 1966. "Although the genuine hippie culture of the sixties has almost completely disappeared or been appropriated, The Hempest has no problem finding a market for its products." (Ballenger b41) He showed that despite all of the different transitions in our culture, these stores still have good business. In fact, "Estimated retail sales for hemp-food and body-care products in the U.S.S exceeded $25 million in 2000, and up from less than $1 million in the early '90s (Wildorf)" (Ballanger B43) He was able to bring things from the past to justify the facts of the present time. The fact is, the hippie era is long gone, and head shops still remain a profitable business.
I hope to perform research like Casassa and Dudley used and I hope to find a balance to where I can personally observe the culture while performing research and interviews. I am not sure what topic I am going to use but Ballenger's features of the form will be tied into my essay as they were in both of the authors work.