Burning to Build An Ethnography of Black Rock City's Department of Public Works

Emma Jay

Date of Award

2004

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Vesperi, Maria

Keywords

Burning Man, Ethnography, Anthropology of Work, Black Rock City, Department of Public Works (DPW)

Area of Concentration

Anthropology

Abstract

This thesis is a description and analysis of ethnographic data I collected while acting as a participant observer with the Burning Man Project's Department of Public Works (DPW) in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada. I attempt to thoroughly describe the inner workings of this small group of people who are committed to building Black Rock City (BRC), the physical manifestation of the Burning Man Project. I describe the ways in which the DPW confronts this seemingly insurmountable task by elucidating the challenges and benefits of the project, the environment, and unique social realm. I attempt to identify and analyze the values, beliefs, and practices of the DPW in order to gain a deeper understanding of how the DPW community is established and maintained. I hope that this study of a small, non-traditional working community will contribute to the current anthropological scholarship concerning work and its effects on humans in various social contexts.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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