The Art and Science of Portraiture
EDU A162
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
Created by Dr. Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot four decades ago, portraiture is a method of social science inquiry distinctive in its blending of art and science, aesthetics and empiricism. This seminar illuminates the origins, purposes, and features of this method, placing it within the larger discourses of social science disciplinary frameworks, and mapping it on the broader terrain of qualitative research. Through researching and writing portraits of individuals, institutions, relationships, processes, or concepts, seminar members learn the tools and strategies of rigorous data gathering, systematic empirical description, discerning analysis, and narrative composition. This is a working seminar with class members serving as discussion leaders, critics, and respondents of each other’s work.
Application and permission of instructor required. Enrollment is limited to 15. Prerequisites: experience with qualitative research design and methods (including interviewing and participant observation) plus background and/or strong interest in aesthetics and empiricism, literary narrative, or the arts. Application and enrollment instructions are posted on the course website.
Available for Harvard Cross Registration
