Field research or fieldwork is a method originally crafted by naturalists and then extended and developed in many other disciplines. In anthropology, fieldwork is more than a research method or a methodology, but is viewed by some anthropologists as a critical feature that differentiates this discipline from others related to humanities and social sciences.
In the early 19th century, fieldwork was dismissed by elite researchers of the nobility as a vulgar and inappropriate activity. However, at the end of 19th century when the British extensively expanded its presence in many areas under the reign of Queen Victoria, fieldwork for exotic culture was largely encouraged and empirical research for practical purposes was valued more than it had been while “armchair anthropologists” were challenged and criticized more than ever. Since the turn of 20th century, fieldwork has become an essential anthropological method.
This talk will explore the use of fieldwork in anthropology along the development of science in modern Western world, and the focus on humanities and cultural diversity which determines the choice of field sites and methods. By looking back in history, the following questions and their relations with the current world will be discussed: how did the research targets and types of fieldwork develop since its emergence? What changes have been made to the meaning of fieldwork to anthropology? How did fieldwork be shaped by history and how did it shape the history in turn? What are the norms of fieldwork in modern anthropology and how were they developed? Will the fieldwork that used to focus on exotic culture, countryside and the “original” world be applied in researches on “us,” the cities and the “modern world,” and how?
田野调查（或田野工作、实地调查）作为一个学术词汇，首先被博物学家所使用，后被不同学科沿用和发展。对于人类学来说，田野工作尤其重要，已经超出了研究方法甚至方法论的意义，甚至一些人类学家认为田野工作是人类学区别于其他人文社会学科的关键特征。
19世纪早期，主要来自贵族阶层的知识精英不屑于自己去进行田野工作，认为那是一项不文雅和体面的活动。然而到了19世纪末期，英国学界沉浸于维多利亚时代向外扩张的乐观主义氛围中，非常鼓励个人对异文化的实地考察，追求实践目的的经验研究得到了空前的重视，摇椅上的理论家受到了前所未有的挑战和批评。进入20世纪后，田野工作逐步被确立为人类学研究的基本规范。
本次讲座将人类学田野工作放在西方整个现代社会科学发展的历史中来考察，提出对人文世界的关注、强调文化差异性等，是田野工作的选择标准和取向。在这个历史过程的回顾中，我们会探讨这样一些历史问题，并试图与当代处境有所关联。田野调查从开创至今，其对象、形式经过了怎样的变化？田野调查对于人类学的重要性发生了怎样的变化？田野调查如何受到历史的影响，又如何影响了历史？现代人类学的田野工作规范是怎样的，它确立的历史又是怎样的？曾经主要研究异邦、乡村、“原始”的人类学田野工作，能否以及如何展开对“我们”、都市、“现代”的考察？