Ethnographic Research Project

If I had the time and resources necessary to undertake an ethnographic fieldwork project anywhere in the world, I would venture to one of the major metropolitan areas of Japan, such at Tokyo or Osaka. The primary focus of my study would relate to concepts and understandings of Japanese history had by young people living in Japan today. The field work would consist of interviewing a number of students at various universities within the confines of the city. The people interviewed would not have to specialize in history or any other social science. In fact, it would be preferable to interview a number people who have different areas of study. The interviews would presumably take place on campus or other setting that would allow for the interviewee to contemplate the questions asked and to respond in truthful manner. Each person interviewed would be asked to sign a form which serves as a contractual agreement that I have the right to use the data collected from the interview within my article or other form of presentation of my findings. The interviews would be conducted with the aid of an interpreter since I do not speak Japanese. I would record each interview so that I could review the actual discourse while compiling and analyzing my data. This study would be worthwhile since an analysis of how a people view their own history is greatly indicative of their worldview. According to a few professors of East Asian History at IU Bloomington, many young people in Japan today know very little about the history of their country. This is due to the fact that Japan is the only first world nation which has an “official history,” or a view of history that is proclaimed by the government to be the only right interpretation. Therefore, this study would also be reflective of how worldview and concepts of national identity can be altered by how history is understood or utilized within a given cultural context.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Seven Reflection Question.

Three Significant Varieties of Tradition

One group to which I feel as though I am very much a part and have been so for a significant amount of time is my group of friends who live in the same building as I do. Indeed, this group has had many traditions during the time in which I have been in college and have known the other members. These customs have in fact changed with time based upon a variety of factors that have affected the reasons and for engaging in the said activities. One tradition that was longstanding, but in recent time disappeared consisted of all of the group members eating at one of the many sushi restaurants in Bloomington on Friday nights. While this tradition was still practiced, it served to reaffirm who was considered part of the entirety of the faction. The reason for the disappearance of this habitual practice was primarily that many of the group members are now quite busy with the vast amount of work associated with being a senior. This means that the tradition only ceased in its practice due to the lack of free time had by the members. Another tradition that has become of increasing importance to members of this collective is congregating at the apartment of one of the members late on Saturday night in order to watch a movie or episodes of a TV show on DVD. This is primarily done simply so that the members can socialize and also discuss, and usually complain about, the honors thesis or other coursework that is causing them to have virtually no free time. This has become of increasing importance due to the fact that this small window of time often the only occasion during the week in which the group members are able to socialize with one another. One tradition that I had a part in the creation of is the annual crashing of faculty receptions in late April. This tradition began during my freshman year when many of my friends and I were running low on food towards the end of the semester. Due to the fact that both of my parents are college professors, I had previous knowledge of the qualities of food leftover after a faculty reception. So this has become a tradition based upon the fun associated with the hunt for free food.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Three Reflection Question

Theoretical or Interpretive Approaches to Folklore

The theoretical or interpretive approach to Folklore that I find most compelling is Structuralism. According to this mode of thought, all forms of folklore take on a certain form within the given context of a society. This means that many different genres of folklore have a basic pattern which consists of certain parts that relate to each other to form a structure that is the entirety of a given form of folklore. In other words, all forms of folklore have given parts which fit together to create a formula that is recognizable to anyone who is part of the cultural context in which the given genre exists. This suggests that while each given construct of a genre of folklore is not necessarily culturally specific in that a formula may somehow be universal, each culture does have certain forms that are only understood within a specific cultural context. For example, the concept of a certain kind of joke may exist across cultural lines, yet the actual contents of the joke may only be understood in a certain group. This may be due to the humor of a joke or the general understanding of another given form of discourse to be reliant upon a given form of esoteric knowledge. In addition to this, narrative forms often fit into a given formula based on the type style, form, and aims of a given narrative. This means many commonalities can be found in the structural forms of narratives based on the reason for the composition of the narrative. In my view, Structuralism is in fact a great mode of interpreting verbal and literary forms of folklore through semiotic codes, but it seems that it is a bit more difficult to detect such formulas in other genres of folklore while still focusing on its relevance and function within a given context. This means that structuralism seems to focus more on the concept of classifying and understanding type of folklore rather than on the way that a given text was given cultural significance by being interrelated to other facets of a social group.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Six Reflection Question

Fourth Encounter Project: Joke (or Other Verbal Art)

A joke which has been circulating in my everyday life is somewhat atypical in that it is of a specific genre which often is quite esoteric in nature. The genre of joke to which I am referring is “jokes that are funny because they make no sense.” The particular joke that has been circulating was actually invented by my younger cousin when he was four years old. He had only recently learned the concept of joking as a form of verbal humor. Due to the fact that he had not fully grasped the concept, the jokes which he invented tended to be virtual non sequiturs. One of these nonsensical jokes I found especially humorous and began retelling to my friends. This was a knock-knock joke, which was originally delivered in this manner:

Person 1: Knock knock

Person 2: Who is there?

Person 1: Hamsters

Person 2: Hamsters who?

Person 1: No hamsters, no pets, I’m going swimming! (Person 1 then runs out of the room after having delivered this punch line.)

After having been told this, I immediately saw much humor in the nonsensical nature of this joke. I began to tell it on rare occasions when such a bizarre form of verbal humor is not expected by all in attendance. In fact, I recently told it to a friend while we were amidst a game of chess. The serious nature of the game juxtaposed with the unusual, nonsensical nature of the joke heightened the intended outcome, which was to baffle yet amuse “person 2.”

Though I encountered this joke a number of years ago, I have continued to find it humorous ever since. The reason for this is not so much that the joke itself is funny, but rather the humorous elements are based on the fact that it makes no sense and bewilders the individual who takes the role of “person 2” in this discourse due to the fact that they are expecting a more traditional form of punch line. This implies that the humor of the joke is reliant on the disjointed nature of the punch line rather than on any sort of pun or other coherent information relayed. For this very reason, the joke itself always seems rather novel. Ultimately the way in which this joke transmits humor is not that which was intended by my cousin some years ago. This suggests that the very nature of the joke has evolved based on differing interpretations and contexts in which the joke is presented.

This blog entry is my 4th Encounter Project: Joke

My Understanding of Performance as a Phenomenon

Based upon the ideas and examples presented in chapter five of Living Folklore, my understandings of performance have deepened in that my concept of what can be considered a performance has been altered. This revision is based upon the fact that I had previously considered a true performance to be something that exists in a clearly defined space or context where the audience had prior knowledge that a performance was to occur. By contrast, Sims and Stephens argue that the occurrence of a performance of some sort does not have to be explicitly stated, rather recognizable structures of speech can indicate to those listening that a verbal performance of some sort is about to occur (p. 128-132).For example, the stating of proverbs, jokes, and other such performances can be denoted by the context in which they are presented within a conversation. This means that certain signals are given within the conversation which separate the proceeding segment of the conversation from that which was merely normal discourse through indications that the type of performance is to ensue. In addition to this, based on the context, both the one who acts out a verbal performance as well as the audience understands the role that each of them plays within the context. This means that all will understand the implicit meanings associated with the verbal content of the performance. For example, the person being told a joke or proverb would understand of the meanings of the proverb or some sort of esoteric knowledge relating to the joke which results in the punch line being interpreted as humorous. This implies a sort of understanding of the roles that the performer and audience have within the context of verbal performance as well as mutual knowledge and understandings of what is being relayed within this form of discourse. In essence, cultural understandings of the indication of a joke being performed within a given context in addition to knowledge relating to the subject being discussed must be shared between those involved in order for this form of verbal cultural performance to occur.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Five Reflection Question.

Ritual from Your Own Life

According to Sims and Stephens, ritual is a habitual act of members of a group which serves as an expression of the traditions, beliefs, values, and identity of that group which can be made visible to nonmembers. Taking part in these rituals serves as a means of defining the function of the group, but also it allows for a sort of separation between those who are and are not directly linked with the faction. Rituals can take the form of any kind of highly contextualized, habitual act which is performed by all members of the group in order to reinforce the values and meanings of the group (Sims and Stephens, 94-96). A notable, yet low-context ritual from my own life is a rather humorous means of saying goodbye to visiting relatives which occurs quite frequently between members of my father’s side of my family. This ritual consisted of the members of the family who had been visited to stand on the front porch of the house and pull a white handkerchief from their pocket and to wave it to the visiting relatives as a means of waving goodbye. This was done by the host family as the departing relatives were pulling out of the driveway. My paternal grandfather was the person who carried on this tradition from his grandparents, who he recalled having done this whenever his family was departing after a visit. A few years ago, I asked him if he knew why they had always done this when he was young and also of the general origins of this family ritual. He revealed that it was believed to date back quite a few generations before his grandparents. In fact, it was reported that this ritual dates back at least to my ancestors who lived in Germany during the first half of the nineteenth century. This sendoff presumably was started by one of my ancestors waving a cloth of some sort, which may have simply been a piece handkerchief that was readily available or may have actually been used as part of the trade of the individual, at departing guests. It is also possible that this way of waving goodbye may have actually been a local tradition practiced in a particular community in a part of Germany in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. If this is so, then a normal practice of communication from centuries ago has been preserved and ritualized within the context of the interaction of descendants. This means that an ordinary activity of the past has become a ritual which is used within the context of family interaction in order to express a sense of group based on a shared family history.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Four Reflection Question

Third Encounter Project: Architecture

In order to investigate a form of traditional folk architecture of a particular area of the world, I had to primarily utilize available library resources. The chosen form of folk architecture is medieval Norwegian stave churches, many of which still stand to this day, though typically they have been altered or repaired throughout the centuries. The information about these unique structures is gathered from Hakon Christie’s 1978 article, “World Archaeology: Lom Stave Church,” which appeared in the peer-reviewed journal, Archaeology and Religion. According to Christie, the vast majority of churches built in during the Middle Ages were constructed of wood, and the twenty seven which still stand are all composed of this building material. These churches are characterized by a nave, or areas surrounding the front alter, with a raised center that is supported by free-standing posts. The basilica, or large, rectangular area at the front of the building where those in attendance sit, is constructed with a “notched-log technique” (p.192-194). This means that the entirety of the church is of post and beam construction, which means that the structure is supported by a series of wooden columns and walls in order to create stability, this results in a unique aesthetic characterized by each of the series of the walls, which are incorporated into the design of the slanting roof. In other words, the form of the structure is greatly affected by the techniques used to create stability. Each of the small walls or rows of wooden columns was covered by a diagonal series of beams, which supported part of the roof. Due to the fact that these supporting walls were not as tall as the central part of the building, which was intentional so as to create a steeple-shape for the central part, the exterior of the building looks to have a very high, narrow, steep roof. This resulted in what appears from the outside to be layered roofs, not entirely dissimilar to some architecture seen in other parts of the world. During the past few centuries, many of these structures were altered either due to repairs or as additions to the older structure. For example, many were said to have been altered in the seventeenth century to have a bell tower or had additions put on so that it took on a cruciform shape (p. 192,194-196). The interior of these churches was originally rectangular in shape, with a door at one of the narrow ends, which was opposite the main altar that was located in the nave. The nave was probably the oldest part of the church and the rest of the room was built as a series of additions starting in the middle ages. During the past few decades, these churches have been repaired as well as the site of thorough archaeological excavations. These have revealed that many of these current structures date back to at least the eleventh century, and that they may have been constructed from reused materials from older buildings that stood there (p.197-200). In fact, it is theorized that these structures may have incorporated many design elements of as well as the actual structure of older, pre-Christian temples. This implies that these temples may illustrate the transition from the worship of Norse gods to the embrace of Christianity.

This blog entry is my 3rd Encounter Project: Architecture.

Source:
Christie, Hakon, " World Archaeology: Lom Stave Church," Archaeology and Religion, Vol. 10, No.2. (Oct., 1978), p. 192-203.

The Chinese New Year Celebration Attended by Kanika

Customary celebratory events typically are prime examples of modern expression of various cultures of the world. This is due to the fact that these events are one of the ways in which a group attempts to explicitly illustrate its own culture through a variety of means. By doing this, a group, whether it is a major or small folk group, reveals its esoteric meanings and perceptions. Kanika’s experience of attending a Chinese New Year celebration is quite an interesting case study in that it was intended to express both traditional Chinese society as well as a more cosmopolitan modern culture. In essence, one of the intentions of the performances was to illustrate how Chinese culture relates to others of the world, and how this sort of interaction has caused a sort of broadening of what many Chinese people perceive to be part of their own culture. This means that both the cultural past and present are deemed of great importance by the group due to the fact that they allow them to feel a as though they have a unique past, but the modern composition exists due to how they are now intertwined with other peoples and cultures of the world.

http://kanikasblog.blogspot.com/2008/02/chinese-new-year.html

This was my second peer review assignment.

Material Culture (Object) Project

In order to discover a hand-made object that was somewhat unfamiliar to me, I had to look no farther than the second floor of the second floor of the IU Art Museum. One work in the museum that instantly caught my eye was the “Walking Buddha” from the fourteenth century. According to the label attached to the stand on which the statue stood, this work was donated to the IU Art Museum by Kappa Kappa Gamma.

The “Walking Buddha” is a bronze statue that stands at about three feet in height and about a foot and a half at its widest point. The entire statue is grayish-black in color with a few specks of a brown. These specks seem more to be the result of the decay of the material rather than an intended facet of the design. The Buddha stands upright and appears to have somewhat elongated proportions. The only clothing worn by the figure is a sort of flowing robe that is wrapped around his lower torso and extends over his left shoulder. This causes the figure to appear as though it has a cape behind him that is waving from movement. It is quite probable that this element was included in the work to help create the illusion of movement. Sitting atop the head of the figure is what appears to be an object shaped somewhat like a spike. Upon closer inspection it is a small tongue of flame. This seems to be directly attached to the head of Buddha. For this reason it is somewhat unclear whether the top of his head is merely decorated with stylized hair, which consists of patterned, tight, short curls, or if this stylized hair is actually the decoration on a helmet of some sort on which the small flame is attached. The figure also is adorned with what appeared to be a piece of jewelry in the form of a metallic band around his neck. There was not much detail in this body adornment, so it was hard to discern its exact function of meaning. The torso and limbs are rather elongated and stylized. The torso is rather muscular, but the limbs are elongated and do not seem very naturalistic. The right arm is shaped in an odd, curving shape as it hangs loosely by the figure’s side. The top half of the left arm is parallel to the torso, but it is bent at the elbow as the lower half reaches out. The hand on this arm is pointed upwards so that it is parallel to the upper half of the arm. The tips of the index finger and the thumb are touching as to create a gesture of some sort. The right leg is bent backwards at the knee as to make it appear as though Buddha is walking. The left leg is perfectly erect rather than extended forward in order to make it seem as though he is walking. His has rather rounded features other than the sharp, delicate nose. The eyes are slightly disproportionately large and are closed, which may be intended to indicate that he is in a meditative state. The mouth is small and almost appears to be slightly smiling. The ears are one of the most notable features of this statue due to the fact that they are extremely elongated and do not look at all naturalistic. There is no real detail of the ears other than that they are a thin, crescent shape. They extend nearly to his shoulders, but they do not show signs of movement in the form of wrinkles or folds. The combination of delicate, stylized facial features and the body posture seems to create an image of the Buddha as a placid figure in a deep meditative state.


This blog entry is my 2nd Encounter Project: Material Culture (Object).

Identity and Group Affiliation

According to Sims and Stephens, the key defining feature of a folk group is a form of esoteric knowledge shared by the members (Sims & Stephens, 30). In essence, communication of this knowledge between the persons involved is what separates the members from the nonmembers. This implies that this contact and sharing of informal knowledge is the basis for identity of the group and those involved (Sims & Stephens, 36). Based on this, one’s social identity, which is formed from the multiplicity of groups to which one perceives him or herself to belong, is founded upon their possession of esoteric knowledge. It is my perception that this is in fact quite true in that much of my perception of my identity is based on that which I associate. For example, one group which I perceive myself to be a member is the larger collective of Scandinavian music fans. There is quite a bit of esoteric knowledge transmitted between members of this group. Much of this knowledge relates to awareness of numerous musical groups and the particular style and ideology of the said musicians. This knowledge is often transmitted over the internet on various music forums and other sorts of web pages, but also in person between those in attendance at concerts. For example, I attended a concert in Chicago last September that featured a number of bands from Helsinki and Espoo, Finland. I observed many people in the crowds were engaging in discourse relating to Scandinavian music. In it seemed that many of those who were involved in these discussions had met at the concert and were attempting to prove to others there that they were in fact a member of this group. In essence, they were attempting to prove that they belonged there by voicing their esoteric knowledge. In addition to this, many others there also expressed their identity as part of the group by wearing concert t-shirts from other Scandinavian music performances that they had been to. For example, by wearing a shirt that depicted the logo of another band and the date of the show, members of the group could prove that they were versed in the music and taking part in the viewing of these performances.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter Two Reflection Question.

First Peer Review: Ameliarate’s Dining Experience

Engaging in new experiences and leaving one’s comfort zone often leads to a great deal of realization of one’s own cultural norms and understandings of how culture and life experience can vary between individuals. Ameliarate’s critique of Anye Tsang’s Little Tibet presents a dynamic, enlightening view of a dining experience that illuminates cultural customs expressed within that given context. By conducting research on the reasons for certain foods being staples of Tibetan cuisine she was able to have more of an understanding of why certain foods and modes of preparation were authentic. This implies that the presence or lack of certain foods, such as rice for example, were indicative of conditions and the preferences of the populous of the nation being represented. This is greatly indicative of the fact that cultural norms can be greatly shaped by geographical environment and other such factors that result in a difference of life experience. This implies that food ways are greatly affected by environmental conditions and other such universal experiences shared by a cultural group, which results in a food type of tradition. Ultimately “ethnic foods” are characterized by the conditions of life of the people from whom they originate. Much of a culture’s past and present is therefore quite visible.

http://ameliarate.blogspot.com/

This was my first peer review assignment.

Musical Performance Visit Project

On the night of January 24, 2008, I attended the IU Art Museum’s Coffee House Night expecting to attend a performance featuring a musician who is a master of the Zimbabwean hand piano. Upon my arrival I discovered that the musician reported to be performing that night was unable to do so. Instead I stumbled upon a one man performance of Latin classical guitar, which is a form of music to which I had not been greatly exposed. The musician’s chair, Marshall Amplifier, and a couple of weathered, acoustic guitars of an unknown brand were set up in a rather central area of the second floor of the IU Art Museum. Surrounding the musician were a large array of sculptures and paintings depicting Buddhist and Hindu deities. It struck me as being rather curious that a Latin guitar performance was taking place in such a setting, but I can only presume that this was probably due to this particular section of the second floor having the most open space for him to utilize. The guitarist was a male of about 35 years of age who was of European descent and was dressed in a black suit, which seemed to match his long, dark hair that he had tied back in a ponytail. Many students and other patrons of the museum were present and were engaged in viewing the displayed works of art. Many passed by the scene of the performance, but only a few seemed to take any notice of the guitarist.

The guitarist played a variety of fascinating classical songs which struck me as being possibly of Spanish or Italian in origin. He rapidly plucked and strummed each successive note with his quite long fingernails. Each song differed greatly from every other he performed despite the fact that they were composed of what I presume were derivations of musical scales. Each song had definite divisions based on the progression of rhythm and note patterns. These subparts of each composition were further emphasized by alterations in tempo and mode of strumming or plucking of each note. Each song varied in length, structure of the progression of each segment of the music, and general sonic atmosphere produced.

After forty minutes or so of performing, the guitarist took a break and talked to a few of the nearly onlookers. I used this opportunity to ask him a few questions and gain more of an understanding of his art. He identified himself as Atanas Tzvetkov, a PhD candidate in the IU School of Music from Bulgaria. He informed me of the origins of many of the songs which he performed, and also told me the address of his website, where some of the compositions were identified. He said that the original context of what he played was that they were written during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries by a number of known composers from various parts of Eastern and Central Europe who based all of their works on traditional Latin folk music. Atanas seemed to indicate that though professional musicians composed these works, it did not differ from the original style of Latin tradition. It seems that though this is deemed by many to be a type of folk Latin music, many composers have embraced the style and have allowed this form to continue and progress in a professional as well as a folk context.

This blog entry is my 1st Encounter Project: Musical Performance Visit.

Folklore as a Part of My Life

According to Sims and Stephens, folklore is a form of knowledge that learned and transmitted in an informal setting and is an expression of values and beliefs that can take a multiplicity of forms. This expression is transmitted as an expression of one’s life experiences in the form of the arts and other mediums of communication (Sims and Stephens, p. 7-8). Based on this concept, one expression of folklore that is important to me within the context of my everyday life is family stories, particularly stories of my ancestors, within my immediate and extended relatives. Though the reminiscing of events relating to my ancestors is present on both sides of my family, my mother’s side abounds with tales of the past. Many stories are often recounted about my German ancestors who lived in rural parts of upstate New York during the nineteenth century. Such stories include the realities of having an agrarian lifestyle, accounts of serving in the Union Army during the Civil War, and other anecdotes relating to the interaction of the particular personalities of my ancestors and their contacts outside of the family. Some of these stories are quite humorous, such as how my great-great-great grandmother would begin preparations for a meal by walking to the hen house and grab two chickens by the neck and would then proceed to kill them by swinging them and hitting their bodies against the side of the coop. In contrast, some of the stories were rather unpleasant, such as haw my great-great-great grandfather was wounded in the ankle at the Battle of the Wilderness, and that his wound never truly healed. Until his death, nearly sixty years after he received the wound, he had to dress his ankle each day due to how it would ooze from a seemingly perpetual infection. In addition to these anecdotes, many other facets of my ancestry have been verbally transmitted through successive generations. These include many words that are German in origin. For example, members of my immediate and extended family all use the word “gwensch,” which is intended to mean “to squeeze,” when speaking to kin. This word “gwensch” actually is derived from the German word “quetschen,” which does in fact mean “to squeeze or to grasp.”

The primary reason why these ancient family anecdotes and unusual words are of a great importance to me is due to the fact that they have allowed my entire family to feel great ties to their past, and ultimately to have a better understanding of themselves. In addition to this, these common tales of ancestors allow for the creation of a sort of identity shared by the extended family that is the result of established social ties.

This blog entry is my response to the Chapter One Reflection Question.