Methodology or Muse?

Methodology or Muse? Tehseen Noorani (bio) I am grateful to the authors for their comments, and opportunity respond. To clarify my approach, sought discuss centrality of ‘set setting’ at descriptive normative levels in Psychedelic Renaissance by focusing on language containment prevalent during ethnographic research. Inspired study material culture, took up certain questions that can be asked any container—how they are constructed maintained, how leaks overflows dealt with, work done boundaries, relationship these containers contents. There undoubtedly more but ones found fruitful think with. My goal was explore concerns over set setting, containment, themselves remaking psychedelic practices discourses, both inside outside clinical trials relation therapeutics calls social justice. agree with Earp Yaden existence a ‘psychedelic community’ needs careful unpacking, although less convinced term as have used it is incoherent. Of course, asking what community we might come know commonplace sciences. do not attempts map out contemporary North American and/or UK scenes, including strength weak ties (Granovetter, 1973) connecting seemingly-disparate clusters such overground research groups, local networks other demarcated constituencies attendance events offline online. use emic vocabulary, interlocutors period claim clearly defined uncontested (on contrary; see also Noorani, 2020), refer, inter alia, movement actors, knowledges, resources, affections from clinic wider underground back again. suggest distinguishing between larger ‘community interest’ (my summary) gathering attended, nested community. We equally find ‘community’ precisely where there fraught conversations amongst actors whether form not, who ‘in’ (or should be) ‘out,’ well feeling being betrayed peers deemed better. During fieldwork contestations were often organized around appeals vanguard audience ‘stay course’ support medicalization thin-end-of-the-wedge tactic. If accept its identity contested, much then this an imagined (Anderson, 1983), perhaps one hinging (unevenly) shared histories countercultural activity, prohibition, stigma, desire redemption? And could tease distinct subcommunities, ‘communities practice’ (Wenger, 1988), [End Page 227] more? remain good scientists interested Renaissance. appreciate commentators wary ‘hermeneutics suspicion’ (Ricoeur, 2008 [1970]) shape critical thinking produce kind conspiratorial mode thinking. But let’s throw baby bathwater. The characterization scientific everything controlled contained, versus communities all hell run loose, helps understanding predicament teams faced (cf. Giffort, 2020). Yet when participants live proximity, maintaining perception separation requires work. thrown Yaden’s “extra-clinical” connections concretely described.” examples section ‘Leaks Overflows’ into four categories: enthusiasm former become advocates therapy; emergence societies research(ers); friendships built through trials; extracurricular sometimes-evangelical researchers therapists. insist phenomena deserve attention. Although would Lewis science “pretty figuring” these...