ENG 3623, American Folklore
MWF 11-11:50 (W302) Spring 1997
Instructor: Richard Burns (W213)
Office Hours: MWF 9-10 (or by appointment)

Textbooks:

Andy Adams, The Log of a Cowboy
Zora Neale Hurston, Mules and Men
Américo Paredes, "With His Pistol in His Hand"
Frances M. Malpezzi and William M. Clements, Italian-American Folklore
Edward D. Ives, The Tape-Recorded Interview (2nd edition)
* Readings below that are on reserve in the library.

Schedule:

Jan. 6 - Introduction
8 - "The State of Arkansaw"
10 - "The State of Arkansaw" (continued) * Clements, "Introduction" to An Arkansas Folklore Sourcebook
13 - American Folklore (or Folklore in America?)/ Who are the folk?
15 - Who are the folk? (continued)
17 - The Concept of Regionalism
20 - Regionalism *William E. Lightfoot, "Regional Folkloristics," and Jan Harold Brunvand, "Regional Folk Speech and Sayings."
22 - Regionalism (continued) * Gillespie, "Foodways in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey"
24 - Ethnic Groups And Ethnic Folklore
29 - Ethnic Identity and Italian-American Folklore Malpezzi & Clements, Italian-American Folklore, "Introduction" and chapters 1-2.
Italian-American Folk Customs and Celebrations Malpezzi & Clements, Italian-American Folklore, chapters 3-4.
31 - Italian-American Folk Beliefs, Folk Medicine, and Games Malpezzi & Clements, Italian-American Folklore, chapters 5-7.
Feb. 3 - Italian-American Oral Traditions, Dance, and Foodways Malpezzi & Clements, Italian-American Folklore, chapters 8-10.
5 - Ethnic Folklore
7 - EXAMINATION
10 - African Backgrounds to African American Folklore 12 - African Backgrounds (continued)
14 - African American Folk Music
17 - African American Folk Music
19 - African American Folk Music
21 - African American Folk Narrative, Hurston, Mules and Men, Part I
24 - African American Folk Narrative
26 - African American Folk Belief Hurston, Mules and Men, Part II
28 - African American Folk Belief
Mar. 3 - The Man of Words, * Mitchell-Kernan, "Signifying"
5 - EXAMINATION
7 - Introduction to Collecting American Folklore, Ives, The Tape-Recorded Interview, pp. 1-74 10-15 - SPRING BREAK
17 - Introduction to Collecting American Folklore, Ives, The Tape-Recorded Interview, pp. 75 -108
19 - Conferences on Collecting Projects
21 - Conferences on Collecting Projects
24 - Religious Folklore, * Clements, "The Folk Church: Institution, Event, Performance"
26 - Mexican-American Folklore
28 - No class 31 - Mexican-American Folklore and Border Conflict Paredes, "With His Pistol in His Hand," Part One
Apr. 2 - Mexican-American Folklore and Border Conflict, Paredes, "With His Pistol in His Hand," Part Two
7 - Video: "The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez"
9 - Video: "The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez" (continued)
11 - Delta Studies Symposium III: The Blues and Beyond. No class meeting; attend at least two sessions of the symposium (April 10-12). One should be a lecture or series of of lectures; the other can be a musical performance. 14 - Occupational Folklore 16 - Cowboy Folklore Adams, Log of a Cowboy, pp. 1-119 18 - Cowboy Folklore, Adams, Log of a Cowboy, pp. 120-239
21 - Cowboy Folklore, Adams, Log of a Cowboy, pp. 240-387 23 - Modern (Urban?) Folklore * Fine, "Kentucky Fried Rat"
25 - Modern Folklore (continued) * Victor, "A Rumor-Panic About a Dangerous Satanic Cult"
28 - Conclusion
May 5 - FINAL EXAMINATION (Monday, 12:30-2:30pm) Requirements

1. Three examinations (7 February, 5 March, 5 May): Each exam will involve both objective and essay components and will require a knowledge of material presented in the readings and in class presentations. The final may include a comprehensive component. Each exam will count one-sixth of your final grade.

2. Folk Group Essay (due 3 February). Write a 3-4 page, typewritten essay in which you discuss at least three folk groups to which you belong (or have belonged). You should show how each of your groups meets the minimal requirements for a "group" in the sociological sense, and should describe at least two examples of folklore relevant to each group. This paper will count one-sixth of your final grade.

3. Field collection (due 23 April). Interview at least five members of a folk group with the purpose of collecting information about some aspect of the group's folklore. Thorough instructions for this project will be provided on 7 March and 17 March. In place of class meetings on 19 March and 21 March, we will have individual conferences to discuss/select a focus for your project. Note that field collections which have not been discussed and approved by 21 March will not be accepted. The project will count one-third of your final grade.

4. Attendance. This course does not fall under the university attendance policy, but regular attendance is important. Consequently, a record of attendance will be kept. And although the Student Handbook explicitly states that a student in an upper-level course cannot receive a failing grade solely on the basis of attendance, your final average will be affected negatively by excessive abseneces. If you miss twelve classes without verified, justifiable excuses (illness, serious family emergency, university business, inclement weather [commuter students only]), your final average will be lowered one letter grade.

5. Make-Up Work; Late Papers. Make-up examinations will not be given without a valid, verifiable excuse (illness, serious family emergency, university business, inclement weather [commuter students only]). A make-up examination must be taken within one week of a student's return to class, and the student is responsible for initiating the make-up process. Note that failure to take an examination will result in a zero being computed as one-sixth of your final grade. Papers are due no later than 5:00 PM on the prescribed dates in the English department office (W313). Late papers will lose one letter grade; papers more than ten days late will not be accepted.