Im Bergdorf: Einleitende Worte

This chapter introduces the central questions the book addresses and shines a light on the praxis of ethnographic research the chapters are based on. It discusses ethnography as a valuable tool for creating more nuanced depictions of social life in the European Alps in a hypermobile and globally interconnected 21st century. The chapter shows why the authors of this volume believe that it is important to devote more scholarly attention to rural places and move beyond simplistic depictions of Alpine villages as isolated or removed from the dynamics of globalisation. It suggests that it is important to move people and places that have long occupied the periphery of academic debates back into view. The introductory chapter also discusses the important role of the visual in creating counter-narratives to stubbornly persistent stereotypical imaginaries about the Alps.