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76482-01 - Seminar: Ethnomethodology in action: Doing Garfinkel’s exercises and tutorials (3 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2025 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers |
Clemens Eisenmann (clemens.eisenmann@unibas.ch)
Lorenza Mondada (lorenza.mondada@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Aims of the seminar The seminar will introduce exercises („Tutorial Problems“) to create specific troubles that enable to make taken-for-granted assumptions and the often unnoticed embodiment of social interaction experienceable and thus observable for detailed investigations (in EM/CA & IL studies). Ethnomethodology (EM) is an approach proposed by Harold Garfinkel since the 1950s, critically located within the American sociology. Ethnomethodology then developed as an important perspective not only in sociology but in other fields; in particular, it influenced Conversation Analysis (CA), through the collaboration between Garfinkel and Harvey Sacks (since the 1960s), co-founder of CA. Through CA it also influenced interactional linguistics (IL) – and this is the reason for having this course in a MA curriculum in linguistics, since EM is often evoked (also often misunderstood) but only superficially in relation to the study of social practices. The seminar will introduce the mentality and the program of Ethnomethodology through some practices that characterized Garfinkel’s teaching: the central notion of instructed action, and the proposal of exercises, breachings, experiments, and tutorials. The seminar will begin with a contextualisation and presentation of the ethnomethodology program, which will be then explicated and experienced through some exercises that Garfinkel was proposing to his students. We will do that on the basis of Garfinkel’s publications but also on the basis of unedited videos of these exercises and other unedited manuscripts coming from the Garfinkel archives. In particular, some exercises will involve the “inverting lenses”, used by Garfinkel to invite students and scholars to experience social activities in a different way (the lenses show the world upside down). Within the seminar, the students will be invited to produce new videos of these exercises and some variations, which will constitute the basis for analytically reflecting about central themes of EM/CA & IL. As a result, the students will learn about the conceptual principles of ethnomethodology, as well as develop analytical skills on actual data that will be available for the writing of seminar papers. A bibliography as well as unedited texts and videos from the Garfinkel archive will be made available to the participants. |
| Comments | Programme (Place: Maiengasse 51, Seminarraum E005 ) 30.9 (16h15-20h) 14.10 (16h15-20h) 28.10 (16h15- we will finish a bit later: 21h max) 18.11 (16h15-20h) 9.12. (16h15-20h) |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14-täglich | Tuesday | 16.15-20.00 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
Dates
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 30.09.2025 | 16.15-19.30 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
| Tuesday 14.10.2025 | 16.15-19.30 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
| Tuesday 28.10.2025 | 16.15-20.30 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
| Tuesday 18.11.2025 | 16.15-19.00 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
| Tuesday 09.12.2025 | 16.15-19.30 | Maiengasse, Seminarraum E005 |
| Modules |
General Linguistics: Recommendations (PhD subject: General Linguistics) Modul: Du système linguistique à la parole situèe: Contextes (Bachelor's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul: Du système linguistique à la parole située: Pratiques (Bachelor's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul: Forschungspraxis und Vertiefung (Master's degree program: Language and Communication) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: English) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: German Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Spanish Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Italian Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Nordic Philology (Start of studies before 01.08.2022)) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft BA (Bachelor's degree subject: Nordic Philology) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Slavic Studies) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: English) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: German Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Spanish Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Italian Language and Literature) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's degree subject: Latin Philology) Modul: Interphilologie: Sprachwissenschaft MA (Master's Studies - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences) Modul: Spécialisation en linguistique française (Master's degree subject: French Language and Literature) Modul: Sprache als Prozess (Master's degree program: Language and Communication) Modul: Sprache und Gesellschaft (Master's degree program: Language and Communication) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment details | The validation will be a personal essay based on the videos produced during the seminar, on which each student will be able to propose a distinct transcript and analysis. |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | Pass / Fail |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, studadmin-philhist@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Fachbereich Französische Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft |