Folklore (ANTHRO 326)
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
-
Children's Games:
play
(definition) - voluntary, amusing interactions with oneself, with others, or with one's environment
-
Children's Games:
play
(aspects) - physical action, manipulation of objects, mental activity
-
Children's Games:
pastime - traditional forms of play with no organized rules (e.g., a teeter-totter)
-
Children's Games:
games - play that involves a clear goal
-
Children's Games:
cooperation -
the point is to accomplish something TOGETHER
(e.g., African foot-linking game) - Games of Skill
-
games that emphasize physical activity
(e.g., mumbledypeg - a knife-tossing game of skill) - Games of Strategy
-
games of logic that require the manipulation of symbols (e.g., chess & checkers)
*many games combine skill and strategy (e.g., football & baseball)
*emphasized in complex societies
*Murdoch: games of strategy reflect a hierarchical social structure - Games of Chance
-
games where chance is a major variable
(e.g., craps)
*associated with strong responsibility training - Secret Languages
- playful manipulation of one's own language, usually by children; three methods: inversion, insertion, & reduplication (boys=inversion, girls=reduplication)
- Acculturation
-
one culture becomes significantly like another culture in the context of a power imbalance
(e.g., replacing revenge killings with sports; baseball hats in St. Vincent, because of economic attraction) - Syncretism
-
traits from 2 or more cultures come together to make a new trait
*usually in a dialogue between two unequal classes
*Trobriand Cricket - "victory dances" derive from sexy dances
*Converted Church center pole - comes from Vodou, where it represented Danbala's "doorway" to the ordinary world
-> form-function inversion (Vodou: spirits descend; Converted: human spirits ascend) - Baseball vs. Football
-
baseball = agricultural worldview
- lasts as long as necessary
- one against many
- analytical
- less specialized roles
football = mechanical (industrial) worldview
- time limit: reflects
hourly salaries
- specialized roles - Proxemics
-
Edward T. Hall (mid 1950s); the use of space in communication
4 main types: public space, social space, personal space, & intimate space (probability of touching) - Kinesics
-
body language, especially gestures (related to proxemics)
(e.g., handshakes, bows)
*coyness display: a way of flirting -
Material Culture:
(definition) - the things a culture makes
-
Material Culture:
Folk Costume - traditional clothing (may not even be what we consider to be clothing at all)
-
Material Culture:
Folk Architecture - (e.g., NW Thailand - house on stilts, walls 4 feet high)
-
Material Culture:
Folk Objects
(definition) - tools, toys, etc.
-
Material Culture:
Folk Objects -
Bullroarer -
an object that makes noise by swinging it on a string; shape varies, but typically resembled an elongated square
-> E.B. Tylor (cult. evol;
survivals): cited
Aborigines' use as a
survival with no sacred
meaning (untrue; calls
spirits)
-> also expressly thunder, or
flatulence from the gods;
associated with male
initiation -
Material Culture:
Folk Objects -
Sacred Flutes -
(e.g., digeridoo - uses circular blowing)
*related to bullroarer
*stories of women owning flutes of power, ending in misuse & male control
*Freudian: male birth; phallic symbolism
-> bullroarer & flute represent anus - Consciousness
- one's awareness of one's self and one's surroundings; changes all the time, because awareness changes; awareness in a very particular fashion in particular circumstances (e.g., "work mode" as opposed to watching TV)
- Altered States of Consciousness
-
an unusual type of awareness; one is aware of things in a not-normal way
(e.g., "beer goggles")
*mostly associated with religion
-> spirits not acessable in
normal perception
-> spirit posession
- drugs
- 15 states
- methods to hurry process -
Altered States of Consciousness:
Entopic Imagery -
images that derive from effects from within the central nervous system
(e.g., the spots one sees when dizzy)
*Lewis Williams -
Altered States of Consciousness:
Form Constants
(of entropic imagery) -
imagery that is always the same in different cultures
*radial lines
*a grid
*filigree/meandering lines (tree-like)
*dots
*parallel lines
*nesting curves
*zig-zag - Stratified Societies
- a society in which groups have different access to resources, power & prestige (in this order)
-
Socioeconomic Class
(definition) -
group of people with more or less the same income & behavior
(e.g., rich people & gracefulness; Santa Monica real estate) -
Socioeconomic Class:
Open Class System -
class system where mobility is possible between the classes; two ways: occupation & marriage
*always the danger of falling in class -
Socioeconomic Class:
Conspicuous Consumption - display of wealth to enhance status
-
Caste
(a closed class system) -
a social class into which one is born and must remain in for one's lifetime; occupation & marriage are regulated
*best studied in India -
Caste:
Ritual Pollution - something about one has been spiritually polluted
-
Torres Strait, New Guinea
(film) - material culture: turtle masks only exist in museums & personal collections around the world
-
Food:
Purity -
wholeness & cleanliness; ambiguity = danger
dirt: matter out of place
->every individual should be
a complete & self-contained
example of its kind & there
should be no mixing of
kinds
*Leviticus taboos
*cows in India -
Food:
Anthropophagy - cannibalism; two kinds: exocannibalism & endocannibalism
- Exocannibalism
-
eating outsiders, usually enemies; almost always in revenge (assoc. with warfare)
*rare today - Endocannibalism
-
eating one's own people
*very common: probably done in 1,000 culture today
*one eats one's dead relatives as a sign of respect
*a death sentence for behavior damaging to the community - Mortuary Cannibalism
-
always relatives; done for different reasons: respect, loneliness
*allowed to rot: mourners experience disgust of death; togetherness -- all suffer
*kuru: "laughing sickness" (fatal); New Guinea; only women & children -
Folk Medicine:
Causes of Disease -
*natural causes (modern Western society)
*magic
*disease-object intrusion
*soul-loss
*spirit intrusion
*breach of taboo - Magic
- the mechanical control of the supernatural; a mechanism makes it happen (e.g., "open sesame")
- Disease-object Intrusion
-
a physical thing is inside the ailing person
*spiritual doctors
*Hebrew shamans
->hallucinogenic drugs used
to see inside the patient
->enemy shaman has evil
helpers in village who
keep putting it back
->disease shot back at enemy
*generally acknowledged as slight-of-hand, but shamans feel that people need a physical manifestation of disease - Soul-Loss
-
lack of interest in normal activities, great sadness, not feeling like working, etc.; described by Western medicine as clinical depression
*where did it go?
->frightened into leaving
->can be a number of souls
for each part of one's body
->soul may have got stuck
somewhere during a dream - Spirit Intrusion
-
can be demon posession
(e.g., pentecostal church - epilepsy & deafness) - Breach of Taboo
- breaking a taboo/prohabition can cause sickness
- Aspects of Successful Healing
-
*naming process
*personality of the healer
*patient's expectations
*techniques of healing - Naming Process
- gives confidence to patient; knowing the name leads to the healing process
- Personality of the Healer
- a caring attitude allows the patient to feel healed
- Patient's Expectations
-
*reputation of the healer
*length traveled to go to healer
*visual display of confidence
(e.g., diplomas on wall; skulls
& drums - traditional healer) - Divination
-
finding something hidden by means of the supernatural; most commonly the future
*"water witching": divining rod used to find water source for well-digging - Omen
-
a natural occurence believed to be a communication from the supernatural
(e.g., augery - Romans would interpret the guts from a sacrificed animal) - Astrology
- divination by the stars
- Ordeal
-
the supernatural communicates through exposure of individuals to danger, often to reveal guilt or innocence
(e.g., Spanish Inquisition - boiling oil; God protects the innocent) - Spirit Medium
-
a spirit communicates through an individual; the spirit tells what one should do to solve a problem
(e.g., Ouija board; Spiritualists - automatic writing) - Oracle
-
divination where one receives an answer to a specific question
(e.g., Bible oracle; Delphic oracle; a healer's dreams and visions) - Imitative Magic
-
magic that operates on the principle that like actions produce like results
(e.g., rain dance) - Contagious Magic
-
magic that operates on the principle that after two things have been in contact, they continue to influence eachother
(e.g., "lucky gym shorts") - Amulets
-
objects with magical force; sometimes magic is forced into it, other times it posesses magic in itself
(e.g., red string from Rebecca's tomb; evil-eye amulets) - Fetish
-
object with a spirit inside that can be controlled; very often a statue
*zombies: spirit in a bottle; from ground-up bones in a rum bottle, kept under bed; sometimes has mirrors & scissors attached on the outside - Sorcery
-
use of magic to harm someone; harming someone supernaturally through spells and paraphernalia (any items associated with task)
*a sorcerer wants others to know who he/she is; sorcery can be the source of power, e.g., political power - Witchcraft
-
harming someone supernaturally through psychological processes only (no items & spells); no obvious way to identify the witch
*comforting for people to feel there's a controlling force, even though the source of the distress is physically undetectable to the naked eye - Evil Eye
-
harming someone supernaturally through envy; typically separate from witchcraft as ANYONE can do it
*amulets used against it (e.g., eye-shaped, Italian horn, red thread, etc.)
*most prevalent in peasant societies (large inequalities)
->can be an equalizer - Religion
- people's relationship to the supernatural
- 3 Types of Religion
-
animatism, animism & theism
*societies change and leave behind survivals - Animatism
-
belief in impersonal source; "force" (or "mana" - "luck", in English)
*everything has force, but some have more than others
*keep force high as possible (e.g., force is low during illness)
*maintains power structure:
->chiefs have a high amount
of mana and can harm or
cure others (sometimes too
great even to touch
themselves)
->tabu/taboo - Tabu/Taboo
-
a prohibition with an immediate, impersonal supernatural sanction
(e.g., impact is like sticking one's finger in an electrical socket) - Animism
-
belief in spirits
*spirit: a supernatural person
->anthropopsychic: spirits
have human-like
personalities
*animistic society: EVERYTHING has a spirit; usually simple societies (hunter-gatherer) - Theism
-
belief in god(s)
*monotheistic societies evolved from polytheism
*polytheistic: one pleas to a specific god for a specific situation
*polytheistic societies: as people begin having different jobs, so, too, do the gods; a majority of monarchs (esp. in Africa) believe in polytheism - God
- a spirit who creates or controls some aspect of the world
- Shaman
-
a person who does spiritual work on behalf of the community through altered states of consciousness; 2 main functions: curing and recovery
*only sought out when there's a problem - Ritual
- a stylized, symbolic action (has meaning beyond itself); can occur on a large or individual scale
- Deindividualism
-
losing one's self in a larger, collective identity
(e.g., football - fans are excited as though they personally scored a touchdown) - Communitas
-
feeling of equal unity during ritual
*differences are erased, although a priest is still a priest... - Rites of Passage
- a ritual that marks a change in status; 3 parts: separation, transition, incorporation
- Liminality
-
being in-between states
*dangerous; the opposite of purity - Hazing
- deliberate humiliation put on new members of a group by established members of a group
- Rite of Intensification
-
ritual that increases the feelings of a group about itself
*occurs on a regular basis
(e.g., Independence Day) - Rite of License
-
ritual that gives one permission to do something one normally cannot do, but only during the ritual
(e.g., Halloween) -
Folk Groups:
Norms -
can be conscious or unconscious
(e.g., St. Vincent church behavior: shirt must be tucked in) -
Folk Groups:
Rules - stated norms
-
Folk Groups:
Laws - a formal rule
-
Folk Groups:
Sanction - a reaction to behavior with the function of controlling that behavior; most common: satire (making fun of the offender)
-
Folk Groups:
Core Values - the values especially valued in a society
- Culture-Specific Syndromes
- a disease found only in certain cultures
- Amok
-
a sudden, violent outburst; typically male (Malaysia)
core value: one must hide one's true feelings - Koro
-
an anxiety state where a man believes his penis is shrinking into his body; male (Malaysia)
core value: sexual modesty (every case follows some sort of overindulgence in a sexual experience) - Latah
-
a hyperstartle reflex (continuously startled for 15 minutes); middle-aged women
core value: a middle-aged woman is the model of proper behavior - Anorexia Nervosa
-
one thinks one is fat and tries to get thinner - one can't see one's real body shape; typically female, younger (Western society)
core value: an attractive person is thin - Major Cultural Institutions
-
*subsistence
*economics
*marriage
*kinship
*special groups
*politics
*spcialization
*language
*art
*religion - Subsistence
- how a culture gets its food
- Economics
- how goods and services are produced, distributed and consumed
- Marriage
-
a socially approved union between a man and a woman
(with some exceptions, e.g., a woman in Africa can obtain equal status to men by cutting off heads in battle and by marrying a woman) - Kinship
- a system of rights and obligations based on categories of relatedness through blood and marriage
- Politics
- how power is excercised and organized
- Socialization
-
acquiring the norms and rules of society
*occurs throughout life, but mostly during childhood - Language
- a system of communication based on arbitrary symbols
- Art
-
forms of creative expression guided by aesthetic principles
*constantly judged according to type and as a success or failure - Subculture
-
a culture that's part of a larger culture
(e.g., surfers) - Subculture and Group Solidarity
-
what adheres a subculture together that doesn't exist in larger culture
*aesthetics
*morality
*slang/jargon/argot
*separate channels of
communication
*special unmet needs (e.g.,
confidence) - Slang
-
playful, alternate language
*playing with the norms - Jargon
- specialized language associated with an occupation
- Stigmatized Groups
-
groups that are marked as inferior in some way
(e.g., lepers, Jews, gypsies, gays, African-Americans)
*create own subculture -
Urban Life:
Social Power -
the ability to get someone else to do your will
*cities are a power
organization
*power can be obtained in many
ways
(e.g., money, popularity,
mutual agreements, assoc.
by family, threats, etc.)
*in any social power
relationship, it has to make
sense to both parties - Types of Political Organization
- band, tribe, chiefdom, state, civilization
- Band
- a small, autonomous unit; essentially hunter-gatherer
- Tribe
-
2 or more communities with something connecting them politically; almost always a military arrangement
*sedentary groups
*marriage arrangements
*when something is given, paying back is delayed - Chiefdom
-
2 or more communities with power integrated in the office of chief
*major decisions made by chief
*chief cannot enforce will, but can keep people in fear because of supernatural authority and wealth - State
- a large, complex society where the govenment has a monopoly on the legitimate use of force
- Civilization
- living in cities
- 4 Reasons People Have Decided To Live In Cities
-
*technology (usually assoc.
with food; hydrolic theory)
*warfare (usually assoc. with
conscription - every village
sends a number of soldiers)
*trade (equal measurements)
*religion (religious officials
ask people to give up power
for supernatural assistance) - Urban Worldview
-
*specialization
*mechanical power (e.g.,
transportation)
*lack of traditional controls
*high mobility
*continuous change
*mechanical time
*anonymity
*record keeping - "The Lau of Malika" (video)
- last two shamans commited ritual suicide; Western world and Christianity slowly taking over; the culture house containing last supernatural objects from shamans' homes
- Migration
- movement from one place to another, emphasizing long stays; some places have concentrations of ethnic groups
- Chain Migration
- migrants help their family and friends to migrate
- Metropole
-
the home country of a colonizing power
(e.g., France was the metropole of Vietnam, therefore many Vietnamese live in Paris) - Transmigration
-
people move back and forth between two or more places
*cheaper airfare during last
20 years
*emphasizes long stay - Transnationalism
-
maintaining networks and identity in more than one country
(e.g., Haitians in NY; Haitian presidential candidate campaigned in NY) - Poverty
-
the lack of resources to provide an adequate standard of living
*perception of lack of needs
within market system - Skid Row
- an area of desperate poverty and substance abuse/dependency in a city
- Culture of Poverty
- adaptations to poverty are passed on from generation to generation
- Instant Gratification
-
satisfaction of desires now rather than later
*any major jolt has a very
adverse effect on the
financial situation
*substance abuse
*fattening foods (cheaper) - Rotating Credit Association
- each member gives a fixed sum to one member at fixed times, by turns
- Social Capital
-
trust, cooperation and compromise built up through social interaction
(e.g., drug dealers) - Occupational Lore
- e.g., cab drivers gain prestige from cleverly chatting up customers or other companies
- Informal Economy
- economic activity outside government oversight or control
- Illegal Economy
-
anything legally prohibited
(e.g., prostitution & drugs) - Unreported Economy
-
under-table tax evasion
(e.g., waitresses not reporting tips; illegal alien work pay)
*subject to much more
exploitation - Bribery
- inducement by reward to act contrary to acceptable behavior
- Kickback
-
a percentage, payment, or service with no added benefit
(e.g., doormen at hotels & cab companies) - Extortion
- demand for payment by threat
- Rentseeking
- payment for something normally done for free
- Facilitation Payments
- payments made to hasten a legal process
- Office Forwardables
-
anything folkloric that's been forwarded in office emails
*a form of resistance against
the management & cubicle
mentality - Chain Letter
- a letter appealing to the supernatural to encourage receivers to send them on to others; 3 types: charity, petition, luck