Book review: The Study of American Folklore by Jan Harold Brunvand
What is Folklore? This is the question posed in the initial chapter of the book The Study of American Folklore by Jan Harold Brunvand. There are many ways to define exactly what Folklore is, but it can be described as unrecorded traditions of people; the content and the manner of communication. Analyzing records and traditions allow anthropologists a glimpse into the common life of the human mind separate from all of the formal records of a people.
This area of study wasn’t legitimate or organized until the late nineteenth century. Some of the founders and early leaders of American Folklore study were John Lomax, Louise Pound, Cecil J. Sharp and others. These anthropologists helped the study of American Folklore grow to become a popular part of the current academic scene.
The word “Folklore” has also undergone some serious scrutiny among scholars. The word “Folk” is apparently a misleading and ambiguous term in an academic context so folklorists have tried to find different words to describe it. They have used words like “hominology” and “lore” as substitutes. “Folk culture” and “verbal arts” have also been proposed as better names.
Folklore encompasses all knowledge, understandings, values, attitudes, assumptions, feelings, and beliefs transmitted by word of mouth or by customary examples. These things are common to all humans because we all interact and are influenced by the cultures and the world around us. Folklore manifests itself in many oral and verbal forms called mentifacts, kinesiological forms known as sociofacts, and in material forms called artifacts. Anthropologists have separated these generalizations into levels that are organized into levels of culture. It includes Elite, Normative, and Folk. Elite includes progressive, highly educated people. Normative is the popular group and includes most mainstream, middle class people. Folk contains all people who are conservative and traditional.
A reason why folklore is such an interesting area of
This area of study wasn’t legitimate or organized until the late nineteenth century. Some of the founders and early leaders of American Folklore study were John Lomax, Louise Pound, Cecil J. Sharp and others. These anthropologists helped the study of American Folklore grow to become a popular part of the current academic scene.
The word “Folklore” has also undergone some serious scrutiny among scholars. The word “Folk” is apparently a misleading and ambiguous term in an academic context so folklorists have tried to find different words to describe it. They have used words like “hominology” and “lore” as substitutes. “Folk culture” and “verbal arts” have also been proposed as better names.
Folklore encompasses all knowledge, understandings, values, attitudes, assumptions, feelings, and beliefs transmitted by word of mouth or by customary examples. These things are common to all humans because we all interact and are influenced by the cultures and the world around us. Folklore manifests itself in many oral and verbal forms called mentifacts, kinesiological forms known as sociofacts, and in material forms called artifacts. Anthropologists have separated these generalizations into levels that are organized into levels of culture. It includes Elite, Normative, and Folk. Elite includes progressive, highly educated people. Normative is the popular group and includes most mainstream, middle class people. Folk contains all people who are conservative and traditional.
A reason why folklore is such an interesting area of