Hybrid genres: fieldwork,detection and the method of Bruno Latour

Abstract

This article explores tensions in the study of innovation, the practice of fieldwork and the narratives these produce, particularly as represented in the work of Latour. It argues that Latour’s ethnographic studies of science and technology parody a variety of sociological and literary genres, particularly detective fiction, and that he uses this literary device as a way of pinpointing unexpected links between fictional and sociological modes of investigation. In Latour’s hands, parody illuminates important issues of fieldwork practice and becomes an innovative method that problematizes conventional sociological narratives and practice.