FEMINIST FIELDWORK IN THE MISOGYNIST SETTING OF THE RUGBY PITCH

Abstract

Male sport settings and the actors involved in them often are quite misogynist in orientation. For feminist researchers who hope to undertake fieldwork, problems in entering and staying in such contexts may appear so exorbitant that they may preclude their participation in these types of settings. Drawing upon his experiences of undertaking feminist fieldwork in the overtly misogynist setting of the rugby pitch (playing field), the author explores some of the issues and problems associated with research in incompatible settings, offers some specific strategies for dealing with them, and notes the promise of this type of data collection. Ultimately, if one wants to maintain any semblance of a centered perspective and sanity, she or he must temporarily become a sylph—a being without a soul—to undertake fieldwork in these types of research environments.