Living Folklore: An Introduction to the Study of People and Their Traditions (2005)

Cover......Page 1
Title Page......Page 4
ISBN 0874216117  087421517X......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Acknowledgments......Page 10
Preface......Page 12
A Working Definition......Page 16
Scholarly Definitions of Folklore......Page 23
Genres of Folklore......Page 27
Defining Folklore Beyond Genre Labels: Texts and Contexts......Page 34
A Brief History of Folklore Study......Page 36
Conclusion......Page 43
2 Groups......Page 45
What is a folk group?......Page 46
Definitions......Page 49
How Folk Groups Form......Page 53
Self-Identification and Group Membership......Page 56
Family, School, and Occupational Groups......Page 59
Family......Page 60
School Groups......Page 62
Occupational Groups......Page 65
Example: Folklore in the Music Store......Page 68
Groups and Belief......Page 71
Example: Belief and Contemporary Legends......Page 75
Conclusion......Page 78
What Is Tradition?......Page 79
Tradition is Both Lore and Process......Page 80
Tradition helps to create and confirm a sense of identity......Page 81
How do people learn and share traditions?......Page 83
Example: Tradition in our daily lives......Page 87
Do traditions disappear?......Page 89
Dynamic and Conservative Elements of Tradition......Page 91
Inventing Tradition......Page 97
The Question of Authenticity......Page 99
Example: Traditions in Folk Art......Page 102
Conclusion......Page 108
4 Ritual......Page 109
What is Ritual?......Page 110
Low-Context and High-Context Rituals......Page 113
Invented Ritual......Page 114
The Question of Belief in Sacred and Secular Rituals......Page 117
Liminality and Ritual Space......Page 120
Rites of Passage......Page 125
Coming of Age Rituals......Page 129
Initiation Rituals......Page 134
Naming Rituals......Page 135
Example: Rituals and Private and Public Identity......Page 136
Conclusion......Page 140
5 Performance......Page 142
What is Performance?......Page 143
Example: A Proverbial Performance......Page 144
The Study of Performance......Page 148
Performance Texts......Page 149
Texture......Page 151
Context......Page 152
Physical Context......Page 153
Social Context......Page 154
Recognizing Texts in Context: Performance Markers and Framing......Page 156
Reflexivity......Page 159
Emergence......Page 161
Folklore that Pushes the Boundaries......Page 165
Example: Performance that Transcends Roles and Rules......Page 167
Aesthetics......Page 170
Traditionality......Page 172
Skill......Page 175
Practicality......Page 176
The Nature of Aesthetic Response......Page 177
Personal Narrative in Performance......Page 182
Example: A Personal Narrative Emerges......Page 185
Conclusion......Page 188
Functionalism......Page 189
Structuralism......Page 194
Psychoanalytic Interpretation......Page 202
Post-Structuralist Approaches......Page 207
Feminist Interpretations......Page 208
Reciprocal Ethnography......Page 210
Intersectionality......Page 213
Conclusion......Page 215
7 Fieldword and Ethnography......Page 217
Finding Ideas......Page 218
Getting Started on Fieldwork......Page 220
Developing and Asking Good Questions......Page 223
Example: Using Open-Ended Questions......Page 224
Field Notes......Page 226
Example: Write-Up of Field Notes......Page 227
Transcribing and Transcripts......Page 231
Insider and Outsider Roles......Page 233
Rapport: Creating and Understanding Researcher-Consultant Relationships......Page 235
Example: Complex Relationships and Responsibilities......Page 237
Ethics......Page 238
Conclusion......Page 239
8 Examples of Folklore Projects......Page 240
A Fire Station?......Page 241
Chief and Captain......Page 243
Dining Room: The First Encounter......Page 245
Engine 121: Firefighter of Steel......Page 246
From High Street to Hell......Page 247
Down Times......Page 249
A Few Good Men......Page 251
Conclusion......Page 253
Gay Rituals: Outing, Biking, and Sewing (Mickey Weems)......Page 255
Coming Out: The Revelation of Self......Page 256
Case Study: Kevin Mason......Page 257
Pride Parades: Coming Out as a Community......Page 258
Case Study: Gloria McCauley......Page 259
The AIDS Quilt: Performance of Remembrance......Page 260
Case Study: Martha Sims, Tom Wulff, et al.......Page 262
Conclusion: Performing Ourselves......Page 263
First Impressions......Page 265
Origins......Page 266
Eric, a Life Interrupted......Page 268
Elements: Expressions of Love, Respect, and Mementos......Page 271
The Effects of Death: Devotion, Grief, and Change......Page 272
Meaning and Need......Page 275
Works Cited......Page 278
Appendix: An Inventory of the Elements That Make Up Eric\'s Roadside Memorial......Page 279
The Art of Gunsmithing in Central Ohio: Heritage Gunsmiths, Inc. (Kevin Eyster)......Page 281
Works Cited......Page 287
9 Suggestions for Activities and Projects......Page 288
Group and Classroom Activities......Page 289
Personal Reflection......Page 290
Fieldwork Projects......Page 291
Integrated Projects—Bringing It All Together......Page 292
3. Verbal Expressions......Page 293
5. Foodways......Page 294
Notes......Page 296
References......Page 301
Index......Page 308