Rachel Borczuch

COM 224- Kopacz

Ethnography

Today, I will be studying a group of my friends who converse on a daily basis. I want to

learn about how conversations start and top, as well as what makes our communication unique to

us.

Several days ago, I sat in a common area of West Chester Universitys E.O. Bull Center

for the Arts, in a place we as theatre majors like to call the cove, where the natives are friend

groups within the department. I observed four of my friends who were in conversation for

approximately and hour. I used participant observation to collect data, because it is easier to do

that than to pull someone aside and put them on the spot, asking questions about my friends,

especially since I also know these people well. This method also provided more natural

conversation in order for me to have the most accurate results. I participated as a complete

participant, again so the conversation would flow as naturally as it would on any given day. The

natives did not know I was taking notes, and I was also involved in discussions.

As I said before, we were set in what we call the cove. It is a lounge area of the

building in the middle of most classrooms where theatre classes take place. It consists of many

chairs and space for people to sit, do homework, talk, and wait for classes or rehearsals to start.

Many people who are friends with one another come in and out of the cove, which causes a

multitude of conversations to go on in most instances. However, this situation consisted of my

four friends and I consistently. It was a normal Wednesday afternoon, after most classes for us

had finished and prior to a rehearsal happening. We all had different goals in our conversations

at different times. Some of us needed information about a class we shared the next day, while
one just wanted to know about all the gossip going on at the time. However, for the most part we

all wanted to enjoy each others company and talk about how our days went, and possibly

entertain each other. The conversation started organically, as more of us trickled into the cove.

My observation began when a friend asked me what the homework was for our acting class. This

struck a long conversation about the class, our professor and how he handles that class, as well as

what we want to learn from that class. This led into conversation about what professors were

helping us in different ways from this professor, and what we liked and didnt like. All

throughout this conversation, people interrupted each other, others joined in and out on the

conversations, and people debated differences in opinion. What was interesting was these

interruptions, interjections, and debates made up more of the conversation than the conversations

themselves. Since we are all good friends, we tend to talk casually to one another. We feel as

though we are playful and friendly, however others may not get that since we make fun of each

other so often, as friends typically do. There arent a lot of norms when it comes to these

conversations, because they differ on a regular basis, however one thing that is considered a

norm to us is for us to be respectful to things that may be happening outside of us. We can get

loud and annoying, but we know our limits, so we do not obstruct other conversations, classes, or

people. Overall the conversation was very relaxed like any normal conversations among good

friends.

My discussions between my friends and I are always unique, but I never really looked

into why. I just thought it was because we are all really weird and just dont have anything better

with our time. However, looking into the conversation made me think about how conversations

stem from so many different areas, whether it is someone coming into a room, or a story that

triggers something, or a joke, or just someone interrupting someone else.