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Spirited Accidents: An Autoethnography of Possibility

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: cnpoulos{at}uncg.edu.

	Abstract

Kierkegaard says, "A human being is spirit. But what is spirit? Spirit is the self. But what is the self? The self is a relation ..." This understanding of spirit-as-self-in-relation, leads, inevitably, to concerns for personal fulfillment, dialogue, community, and social justice in our world. To engage spirit in our ethnographic practice is to engage the self in relation—with the world, with others, with the very frames and possibilities of our being. The accidental ethnographer, open to the driving pulse of spirited searching, may stumble into openings never anticipated. Following these openings may lead to transcendent experiences that bring new relational possibilities into view.

First published on November 3, 2009, doi:10.1177/1077800409350063

Qualitative Inquiry 2010;16:49.

A more recent version of this article appeared on January 1, 2010


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