The Nature of Tradition

Gailey, Alan

doi:10.1080/0015587x.1989.9715762

Cited by 9 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…It appears however, that it is within the fields of folklore and cultural anthropology (including ethnomusicology), that scholars have been most active in discussing this concept in its own terms, and a number of studies have been written to that end in recent years (e.g. Ben- Amos 1984;Cohen 1989;Coplan 1991;Finnegan 1991Finnegan , 1992Gailey 1989;Glassie 1995;Handler and Linnekin 1984;Holbek 1983;Linnekin 1983;Newall 1987;Toren 1988;Thomas 1992;Vasina 1985). This is not to say that scholars in these fields attach equal (or indeed any) importance to understanding what we mean by tradition.…”

Section: Tradition In the Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

The Idea of Tradition Examined in the Light of Two Australian Musical Studies

McDonald¹

1996

Yearbook for Traditional Music

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Section: Tradition In the Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

The Idea of Tradition Examined in the Light of Two Australian Musical Studies

McDonald¹

1996

Yearbook for Traditional Music

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“…In folklore studies and in related fields, "tradition" was and continued to be, a major idea that was explored and analyzed in scholarship and in society, regardless of its elimination by me from the defining criteria of folklore. For a selection of studies about tradition see: Anttonen (2005); Becker (1998); Blank and Howard (2013); Bronner (1998Bronner ( , 2011; Cashman et alii (2011); Gaily (1989); Glassie (1995); Hobsbawm and Ranger (1983); Honko (1988);McDonald (1997); Shils (1981); Utley (1961);Watson (1997). Tongue in cheek, when Linda Dégh guest edited an issue of the Journal of Folklore Research on "Culture, Tradition, Identity" she invited me to write an essay about "tradition", see Ben-Amos (1984).…”

Section: Dan Ben-amosmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Definition of Folklore: A Personal Narrative

Ben‐Amos

2014

Estudis De Literatura Oral Popular / Studies in Oral Folk Literature

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My definition of folklore as "artistic communication in small groups" was forged in the context of folklore studies in the 1960s, in the discontent with the definitions that were current at the time, and under the influence of anthropology, linguistics -particularly 'the ethnography of speaking' -and Russian formalism. My field research among the Edo people of Nigeria had a formative impact upon my conception of folklore, when I observed their storytellers, singers, dancers and diviners in performance. The response to the definition was initially negative, or at best ambivalent, but as time passed, it took a more positive turn. Keywords context; communication; definition; performance; process Resum La meva definició de folklore com a «comunicació artística en petit grup» va sorgir en el context dels estudis folklòrics dels anys seixanta, com a resultat de la meva insatisfacció amb les definicions que circulaven en aquell moment, i sota la influència de l'antropologia, la lingüística -en particular ‹l'etnografia de la parla›-i el formalisme rus. El meu treball de camp entre els habitants d'Edo a Nigèria va tenir un impacte formatiu en la meva concepció del folklore, quan vaig observar els seus narradors, cantants, ballarins i endevins en acció. La resposta a la definició va ser inicialment negativa o, en el millor dels casos, ambivalent, però a mesura que passava el temps, va prendre un gir més positiu.

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“…Folklorists, anthropologists, archaeologists, oral historians, and others have rigorously dissected the definitional criteria for the recognition and qualification of tradition, rendering the notion of tradition itself as, at least, malleable (Ben-Amos 1984;Gailey 1989;Handler and Linnekin 1984;Hobsbawm 1983;Shil 1981;Vansina 1985). Tradition has been not just the core concept of folklore but, for some, the raison d'être of the discipline.…”

Section: P P P P Parsing the Popul Arsing The Popul Arsing The Popul mentioning

confidence: 99%

Parsing the Popular

Laba

2009

ethno

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This work argues for an engagement with, and analysis of folkloric expression through the concept and cultural practices of communicative action. The article is motivated by a critical need to situate folklore within dynamic and compelling currents of popular culture. It is suggested that the capacities of folklore as popular culture serve to renew and impel folklore studies for traction and relevance in analytic encounters with contemporary media, culture, and society. Foundational concepts and theoretical trajectories in folklore and communication are detailed, challenged and revised with a view to capturing the substance and significance of folklore in cultural terms. The analysis presented is premised on the notion that there is a decisive intersection of the concepts and practices of folklore and popular culture to the extent that definitional boundaries between them are imprecise and unsustainable. The analysis explores how folklore as popular culture socially articulates, negotiates and asserts meaning in codes, practices, knowledge, spaces and expressive strategies in contemporary cultural conditions and environments.

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The Nature of Tradition

Cited by 9 publications

References 5 publications

The Idea of Tradition Examined in the Light of Two Australian Musical Studies

The Idea of Tradition Examined in the Light of Two Australian Musical Studies

A Definition of Folklore: A Personal Narrative

Parsing the Popular

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