Clearly the superstitions which she mentions here are
of less
interest than the way in which they expose Mrs. Riddle’s attitudes, and
their relation to those of other members of her community. In
telling
this story, Mrs. Riddle is establishing a value-laden point of view
which
is intended both as an explanation and a model for possible emulation.
What is needed, then, for the study of these smaller genres
of folklore
is a frame of reference which will allow both for a description and
relation
of form and an analysis of recurrent use. In this paper I will
look
at proverbs and superstitions, comparing their forms and
functions.
I will point to those functional variables which parallel differences
in
form. I will then discuss other small genres in light of the [beginning
of page 47] distinction between proverb and superstition.
Finally,
I will argue that the study of the smaller genres is of greatest
importance
to the student culture, for it is through such traditional forms that
the
basic institutions of society are often put into practice.
I
Both proverbs and superstitions confront and attempt to
control recurrent
anxiety situations by giving them a “name.” Humans, as cultural
beings,
have a “rage for order.” Anxiety arises with the intuition of
chaos,
of disruption of the orderly procession of life, and of dissolution of
group. Proverbs “name” situations in which social stability is
repeatedly
threatened, the potentially disruptive forces coming from within the
group.
Superstitions give a name to occasions in which order is in danger of
being
disrupted (or susceptible to being reinforced) through forces outside
the
group.
These traditional genres may handle problems in various
ways, depending
upon whether the question is being faced immediately or whether the
crisis
has already passed but left a residual feeling of disorientation.
In the case of the former condition, the item employed will recommend a
future course of action; in the latter, though it still promotes the
adoption
of an attitude that will allow one to handle the same situation in the
future, its immediate function is more of a realignment procedure --
the
proverb or superstition arises to take the edge off the shock of the
disorienting
experience, reimposing a sense of order, by aligning this experience
with
others of its class through giving it its traditional name. For
instance,
a proverb like “haste makes waste” may be used in two quite different
ways,
which one might designate “active” and “passive.” In its active
use,
the proverb may arise in a discussion in which one person is confronted
with a problem of having to decide whether to rush a job or not, and
then
the proverb recommends a specific and immediate course of action.
In its passive use, a person may hurry a job and make a costly mistake
as a result, and the use of the proverb then would simply provide the
consolation
of placing the mistake in an understandable -- and therefore
controllable
category of happenings, one that can perhaps be avoided in the future
through
following the dictates of the proverb.
The same could be pointed to in certain uses of
superstition.
For instance, the widely reported, “if a black cat crosses your path,
you’ll
have bad luck,” can help someone handle the experience of having an [beginning
of page 48] ebony feline pass in front of him. If this should
happen, the repetition of the superstition (even if it is only repeated
in the mind) will prepare you for a future calamity, thus eliminating
the
shock potential. This will cause a change in your future actions,
whether through adopting a guarded attitude or simply by enacting a
counteractant
practice to eliminate the bad luck (like spitting and turning around
three
times). This would be the active usage of the belief. On
the
other hand, if something should happen to you of a disastrous nature,
this
may remind you of having had a black cat cross your path
recently.
You will therefore be able to assign a cause to the happening, giving
it
a name, and thus you are able to more effectively cope with the
situation
psychologically. This would be the more passive use.
II
Proverbs and superstitions share a great deal. Not
only are they
both control devices which arise in recurrent problem situations, but
they
use similar cause-effect arguments for proposing their solutions.
Both are concise and sententious statements which appear to embody the
wisdom accrued through the past practice of the group. But they
differ
not only in the area of life in which they occur, but in the devices
and
formulae which they employ.
Proverbs are expressions suggested in the popular mind at
those times
when a member of the group collides in some way with others, or at
least
threatens to do so. Therefore one can fruitfully use the
occurrences
of proverbs in context as an index to the places where the social
structure
of the community is weakest and needs the greatest amount of
control.
Consequently the study of proverbs in a situation of that sort would
call
for an indication not only of the repertoire of sayings available to a
group, but how often individual items crop up.
Looked upon in this way, proverbs can be seen to regulate to
a certain
extent man’s relation to his neighbors; they do this by setting forth
solutions
to the problems that arise between them repeatedly, phrasing them in
such
a way that they are at one and the same time concise, witty, memorable,
forceful, and illustrative of past usage. But most important for
the implementation of their rhetorical strategy, they are phrased
impersonally,
so that the very personal problem becomes more universalized. The
argument of the proverb, in other words, achieves its ability to
influence
by being couched in objective, third-person terms. The appearance
of objectivity is further heightened when they employ analogic or
metaphoric
techniques of argument.
[beginning of page 49] Superstitions, too, are
impersonal in
their approach and concise in their phrasing; yet they do not generally
employ poetic techniques to emphasize this concision.
Superstitions
do not call attention to themselves as meaningful statements to the
same
degree as proverbs; it may be for this reason that they are so often
accompanied
by exemplary legends. While superstitions are as concise as
proverbs,
they operate in a different sector of man’s experience, and this is
reflected
in the different themes and strategy of the two. Proverbs attack
the problems of social behavior, while superstitions attempt to handle
man’s confrontation with extrapersonal (natural or supernatural)
forces.
In most cases, these forces threaten to disrupt the continued existence
of individuals, and by extension, the group. Most superstitions
attack
potentially malevolent forces. Some, however, recognize the
existence
of benevolent external forces and try to convert them to the advantage
of the individual or group. All superstitions present a technique
for handling change when it is brought on by forces external to the
group,
whether the force is invoked by a member of the group (as in magic), or
emerging from a totally external, uncontrolled source. But these
forces are handled in superstition in different ways, depending upon
whether
they have had their effect already or simply have been predicted to
have
an effect.
Superstitions work:
1. by allowing for the prediction of the coming of
these forces,
therefore eliminating the shock potential which is really what man
cannot
psychologically handle. This is most clearly seen in those
superstitions
called omens or portents, like “if you dream of
marriage
a close friend is soon to die” or “if your right palm itches, you are
going
to get some money, but if your left palm itches, you are going to lose
money.”
2. by providing a counteractant for these
forces once they
have had effect, as in counterspells or cures, like “if you get
measles,
rub goose grease on the bumps.” These are often found in
combination
with those above, as in “if a dog howls at night, a neighbor will die,
unless you go to the crossroads, spit at the center, turn around three
times, and make the sign of the cross.”
3. by setting up an atmosphere in which benevolent
forces (good
luck) prevent the onslaught of these forces, as in preventatives
like “if you put up a horseshoe with its face up over your door that
will
give you luck” (or “keep away bad luck”).
[beginning of page 50] Both proverbs and
superstitions, then,
present a course of future action to the spoken-to when confronted with
a problem which threatens to disrupt the smooth working of life.
And they both argue impersonally, bringing to bear the manner in which
the problem has been handled before. Their major difference is in
the sectors of life in which they work, and the language which they use
to suggest action. Perhaps the superstition is not phrased in as
arresting and artificial a manner as the proverb because it is commonly
part of a legend and the narrative gives it the force of authority and
past usage which is built into most proverbs through their
phrasing.
On the other band, the differences in technique seem more readily
explainable
through the demands arising out of contextual differences in
usage.
Since the proverb-sayer (who may be described as a protagonist) is
treating
a social problem which may have multiple proverbial solutions, he is in
the position of asserting one sanctioned approach over others equally
sanctioned.
The poetic, often metaphorical language of the proverb can be seen at
least
in part as a consequence of the protagonist’s recognition of the fact
that
the assertion may not find common agreement. To avoid possible
conflict
over the content of the assertion, and to psychologically remove the
protagonist
as personally-involved arguer from his argument, his recommendation is
couched in indirect and impersonal rhetoric. The proverb-sayer is
strategically recognizing the complexity of action in the social sphere
and formulating a recommendation in such a way as to de-emphasize
possible
interpersonal conflict and thereby to assure the greatest stability for
the continuing conversation. For a statement dealing with social
interaction to survive and become a part of traditional expression, it
will probably have to afford the proverb-sayer the kind of conflict
protection
that poetic language provides.
On the other hand, the superstition-sayer, commenting on the
effects
of natural or supernatural forces, gives voice to what he can assume to
be a belief held by both himself and those to whom he is speaking as a
response to a common problem. Since he is more or less sure that
his assertion will meet with agreement, the speaker need not fear
conflict
as a result of ego assertion or conflicting ideas for resolving the
problem,
and thus he can formulate his statement using much more direct
language.
He knows beforehand that his statement will receive sympathetic
response
in most cases, and be needn’t couch his assertion in terms that will
avoid
possible conflict. Conflict already exists between the individual
affected (or threatened) and the extrapersonal [beginning of page
51]
forces doing the affecting. The speaker is announcing what must
be
regarded under most conditions as a helpful point of view.
There are certain kinds of superstitions which
consistently are
found in poetic form; for instance, weather superstitions (often, in
fact,
called “weather proverbs”). They are cast in this form not
because
a greater amount of potential conflict is involved between speaker and
spoken-to but because a greater and more persistent conflict exists in
these areas between man and nature. A sailor must be able to
remember
ways of predicting a storm. His casting of “Red sky in morning,
sailor
take warning; red sky at night, sailor’s delight” in poetic form makes
the knowledge more immediately available. This is the central
function
of all mnemonic devices, in fact -- to make knowledge more memorable so
that under stress conditions it can be recalled more easily. In
this
sense, the mnemonic, of all small forms of traditional expression,
involves
the least amount of interpersonal involvement (and threat of
manipulation
for personal reasons) of any folklore genre.
III
If the mnemonic device is the least susceptible to use for
the establishment
of higher status through the manipulation of words, there are a number
of interpersonal types of traditional expressions which are
considerably
more available for such purposes of ego-gain than proverbs and
superstitions.
These include taunts, teases, boasts, charms, spells, curses, and
prayers.
As with the forms discussed earlier, these traditional utterances
commonly
arise in the course of everyday interpersonal communication, and thus
we
might group them all under the rubric of conversational genres.
All of them employ the pattern of the back-and-forth movement of
converse,
though tiny enter into different sectors of the communications
experience.
All of them can be voiced by individuals who need not play any
specially
licensed roles to bring them into use. In other words, they share
a similar structure of context -- in the face-to-face situation in
which
they all arise -- and a similar dramatic structure as well -- in the
way
in which they set up a protagonist-antagonist relationship between the
speaker and spoken-to, and proceed to only suggest a possible
resolution
to the conflict. However, they differ in the situations in which
they arise and therefore they utilize different techniques from
different
points of view and with varying strategies of argument.
Before we examine the strategies however, it seems important
to isolate
the technical and contextual variables. Proverbs are not the only
[beginning
of page 52] conversational genres which confront social problems
and
attempt to adjust social positioning. Boasts and taunts also
arise
in this sector of life, though they attack the problems with the
technique
of the personal (first person) point of view. Similarly,
superstitions
are related to charms, spells and prayers in their attempt to control
extrapersonal
forces, but like boasts and taunts, they use the vantage of the direct
personal approach. Thus we can discern two variables operating
here
creating four possible classes of conversational genres.
Personal (first person) point of view
Confronting inter-personal forces (social) --
boasts, taunts.
Confronting extra-personal forces (natural, supernatural) --
prayers, spells, charms.
(blessings, curses are on the borderline between the above two
categories)
Impersonal (third person) point of view
Confronting inter-personal forces (social) --
proverbs.
Confronting extra-personal forces (natural, supernatural) --
superstitions.
These differences are paralleled by variations in the
rhetorical strategies
used by these related genres. Boasts and taunts attempt to
establish
a direct interpersonal power and domination. Charms, spells, and
prayers attempt to control extra-personal forces for individual gain by
personifying these forces (as a deity) and then by addressing them in
the
rhetoric of direct appeal. Boasts and taunts function by assuming
a position of superior status operating through the power of sheer
invective;
prayers and charms rather work through the strategy of taking an
inferior
position to the larger inexorable forces.
IV
The major distinction established here in the personal
conversational
genres is between those, like boasts, which seek to persuade and to
control
the situation through the simple power of words, and others, like
prayers,
which attempt to invoke supernatural power for assistance in attaining
personal control. Perhaps this can most clearly be demonstrated
through
the different uses of the curse, and its close relative, the blessing.
Looked upon from the rhetorical point of view, the curse
seems to operate
completely in the social realm. And many curses do, in fact, [beginning
of page 53] work like taunts, consigning the spoken-to (cursed-at)
to an inferior social position. Such curses as “You’re a
son-of-a-bitch”
or “You’re a bastard” obviously arose in a cultural milieu in which
parentage
and especially legitimacy meant a great deal more than it seems to
today.
These utterances consigned the cursed-at to a despised social realm by
intent, and they preserve some of this force in present usage.
However, most curses do not work in the direct way.
Rather, they
invoke the aid of an extrapersonal force to place the cursed-at in the
interior position. That this is the more common method of
addressing
the problem is clear in the definition of curse from the Standard
Dictionary
of Folklore, Mythology and Legend: “A malediction; the wishing of
evil
upon a person; ...A curse invokes a power -- divine, demonic, or
magical
-- against which the person cursed has no defense, unless he in some
manner
propitiates the power or brings to bear against it a stronger power”
(Leach,
Vol. I:271). This kind of invocation of supernatural power is
found
in modern parlance, in such exclamations as “May your body rest
eternally
in Hell” or even “God damn you!” even though these may have lost some
of
their rhetorical force perhaps through the celebrated demise of God, or
more likely because of their overuse. Consequently, there are
curses
which fit into both categories of the personal conversational
genres.
The same is true of the blessing.
However, even with those curses which call upon supernatural
forces,
they do so to adjust social alignment. This is not true of the
other
genres in this area of the grid: spells, charms, and prayers.
These
rather attempt to enlist the aid of a supernatural power to ensure the
well-being of the speaker. Prayers use a different approach than
charms and spells; they address the deity as a person, and through the
rhetoric of supplication and appeal attempt to gain a favor. Prayers
are “an address to a higher power [a deity] requesting some boon or
guidance”
(Leach, Vol. II:884). This is often simply an appeal for
protection,
as in the common
Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep;
And if I die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
|
The charm is generally described in much the same terms: “An
object,
rhyme or chant used to perform magic by enlisting the aid of [beginning
of page 54] helpful spirits or by discouraging malevolent ones”
(Clarke
8). However, the strategy of the charm is different from the
supplicatory
techniques of the prayer. The charm or spell (the two can
be used interchangeably) speaks directly to the personified force, and
often in demanding tones:
Rain, rain, go away,
Come again another day.
|
or:
Bees, stop [here]!
Wax go to Sainte-Vierge,
Honey come to me!
Come down, beauties, beauties, beauties.
(Fife 154)
|
On the other hand, charms often speak “in the name of”
some deity
in order to influence the spirit to whom it is directed. The
reference
to the deity only compounds the magic rather than being the object of
the
appeal. ere, for instance, is a Manx charm for a toothache:
Saint Peter was ordained a saint
Standing on a marble stone,
Jesus came to him alone,
And saith unto him, “Peter what makes thee Shake?”
Peter replied, “My Lord and Master it is the toothache.”
Jesus said, “Rise up and be healed, and keep these words for my sake,
And thou shalt never more be troubled with toothache.”
(Moore 98)
|
The idea clearly is that through verbal reenactment, the original
miracle
will be also replayed.
In the interest of clarity, it must be noted that though the
distinction
has been made between prayer and charm or spell, certain charms assume
a rhetorical approach very close to that of the prayer. For
instance,
the Manx charm against the fairies is:
Peace of God and peace of man,
Peace of God on Columb-Killey,
On each window and each door,
On every hole admitting moonlight,
On the four corners of the house,
[beginning of page 55]
And on the place of my rest,
And peace of God on myself.
(Moore 99)
|
Their connection with uncommon ritualized practices raises the question
whether charms or spells are “conversational” forms of folklore, but
they
have been included here because they involve the same mode of personal
address for the same kind of persuasive purpose as proverbs and the
other
members of this group.
The same question might be raised concerning taunts and
boasts, since
in many groups they arise primarily as items in the performance of the
verbal contest or “flyting.” Nevertheless, both boasts and taunts
are to be observed also in heightened forms of conversation.
There is little difference between a boast and a
taunt. The boast
is, of course, a series of exaggerations about the powerful capacities
of the speaker, intended to place his hearers in a subordinate
position,
usually in terms of strength and endurance. The symbols used are
almost always closely tied to animal masculinity:
I was born in the backwoods, suckled by a
bear;
I’ve got three sets of jawbone teeth and an extra layer of hair.
When I was three I sat in a barrel of knives.
Then a rattlesnake bit me, crawled off and died.
So when I come in here, I’m no stranger,
’Cause when I leave, my ass-hole print leaves “danger.”
|
The taunt, on the other hand, is directed toward “the others,”
toward
“the others,” toward individual onlookers, and talk in terms of their
lack
of virility, as in such phrases as “You lily-livered, yellow-bellied
sapsucker.”
Taunts are, in a very real way, the proverbs of children.
That is, they
are the traditional devices by which the members of this
tradition-oriented
sub-group take care of their recurrent interpersonal problems by
announcing
their values and their approved ways of acting. Taunts, like
proverbs,
point out where a problem is and propose an avoidance formula by
directly
“making fun” of the errant one. But they can do so much more
directly
than the proverbs of adults, presumably because children cannot
be
expected to have sufficient control over words to know the proverbs and
to use them in establishing canons of conduct and social
relationship.
Thus, they are able to obtain license to legislate such matters by
talking
directly about the problem. For instance, tattlers are placed in
temporary social isolation by children with:
[beginning of page 56]
Tattle-tale tit
Your tongue shall be split,
And all the dogs in town
Shall have a little bit.
|
Or the excessive bawler is greeted with:
Cry, baby, cry
Stick your finger in your eye
And tell your Ma it wasn’t I.
|
V
By viewing taunts as regulators of social behavior,
especially among
children, and as means of establishing a social hierarchy (temporary as
it may be), we have been emphasizing traditional techniques for
controlling
through exclusion. Proverbs, curses, taunts and boasts
all
attempt to induce future action through the establishment of the
speaker
as arbiter of values (and therefore modes of action). These are
the
traditional ways of aggressively assuming the mantle of power, proverbs
being only the least apparently aggressive of these forms because of
the
impersonal language used. There are however traditional ways of
social
ordering by principles of inclusion: pledges, greetings and
partings
and other conversational punctuation marks, traditional repartee, and
jargon,
slang, argot, and all other special code language.
All of these are the traditional ways in which a member of a
group proclaims
his membership; through this proclamation, he also demonstrates the
group’s
solidarity. This group may be so exclusive that an extreme amount
of esoteric expression is connected with membership, or it may simply
involve
a demonstration of friendship. Consequently, the forms which are
included here range from the password which must be repeated at the
beginning
or ending of each meeting of two or more members, to the simple
greetings
and partings which are common to everyday parlance.
Traditional greetings may range from the formal (like “How
do you do?”
or “Happy to meet you”) to the very familiar (like “Hi,” “What’s up?”
or
“How’re you cuttin’it?”). The same is true in partings, ranging
from
“It’s been a pleasure making your acquaintance” to “Lator,
’gator”).
Each of these is designed to establish a social relationship which will
affect future actions between the speakers. They work through a
principle
of acceptance simply by establishing verbal contact. The more
interpersonal
the relationship becomes, the more com- [beginning of page 57]
munity
of interest is established, and the less formal the exchanges
become.
But the less formal the conversations become, the more special
traditional
“in-group” expressions emerge in the exchanges. There is a direct
relationship
between the amount of in-group traditions invented and utilized and the
amount of emotionally charged time spent together, the values and
special
activities shared, and the need felt to exclude others who do not share
these attitudes and activities (Jansen). Consequently, though
these
forms are primarily used as means of denominating principles of
inclusion
and community, they may operate exclusively at the same time if a
non-member
of the group is present. Nothing can be more disorienting and
frustrating
than an extreme expressive demonstration of group solidarity to an
onlooking
non-member.
Similarly, there is a direct proportion between these
esoteric factors
(time, intensity, special activity, out-group exclusion) and the amount
of traditional expression observable in the in-group. This is
especially
observable in the development of code languages (special
vocabularies).
An occupational group which is involved in highly dangerous work or
whose
members must spend a lot of time together because of the demands of the
job will develop a large number of items of jargon, most of them
relating
to their occupational activity. The same is true of special
interest
groups (like spelunkers or hot-rudders or science-fiction fans).
Groups formed primarily for social purposes will develop a body of
slang
terms, usually relating to their social activities and in many cases
will
utilize more involved, composed mottoes, pledges, and proverbs which
will
be brought into the discourse of the meetings of these groups.
The
most extreme form of these special vocabularies are languages like “Pig
Latin” which involve such esoteric coding that only those who know the
rules, that is, how to make the proper language transformation, can
understand.
This esoteric demonstration of community is not just
observable in such
languages. It is a dimension of most of the larger, more complex
genres of folklore. For instance, the performance of a tale or a
ballad, by calling together a group and asking them to identify with
and
approve of the enactment, asks for the same kind of ratification of
community
and community values. In a more limited way, a proverb such as
“Never
mind the weather as long as we’re together” functions as a
demonstration
of solidarity in the face of outside threat, and this, as [beginning
of page 58] we’ve seen, is a motive in the voicing of many
superstitions:
community approved solutions to threatening external forces.
These conversational forms which emphasize community often
do so in
the face of external threat. While functioning as a normative and
integrating influence in the social workings of the in-group, they work
aggressively from the point of view of “the others.” Quite
obviously,
the taunt and the boast and even the proverb can also function in this
manner in specific use situations. Indeed, it is only those
genres
like the prayer which assume the passive pose that do not function
aggressively.
Some, like the proverb, generally direct the aggressive impulse at
other
members of one’s own group while casting their advice in impersonal and
normative terms. Others, like the taunt, often channel their
onslaught
onto members of another group, and therefore can talk in more personal
terms. (There seems to be an axiom at work here--the more you
know
someone personally, the more impersonal or stylized your approach must
be in arguing traditionally.) And finally, there are those genres
like slogans and code languages which function both aggressively and
normatively
at the same time but in regard to two different groups of hearers.
VI
The point of these remarks on aggression and normation in
the uses of
conversational forms of folklore is that with these short genres we can
see the complexity and totality of traditional usage most
clearly.
Folklore is a social phenomenon: it articulates the relationships
between
individuals as they group themselves institutionally; it allows a
definition
of group; it points out the places at which the members of the group
habitually
conflict with each other and represents techniques by which the
conflicting
factors can be regulated; it establishes the confines of the group and
proposes methods for handling forces external to the community, whether
arising from other groups or from nature and the supernatural.
This view of folklore builds upon Georg Simmel’s premise
that community
is established through a combination of associative and dissociative
phenomena.
Conflict, even though it does not necessarily further the ideal aims of
the group, nevertheless is an element of sociation (social
interaction).
“If every interaction among men is a sociation, conflict -- after all
one
of the most vivid interactions, which, furthermore cannot possibly be
carried
on by one individual alone -- must [beginning of page 59]
certainly
be considered as sociation... Conflict is...designed to resolve
divergent
dualisms; it is a way of achieving some kind of unity, even if it be
through
the annihilation of one of the conflicting parties” (Simmel 13).
Folklore represents the traditional means by which all kinds of
sociations
are manifested and manipulated, those founded upon ego-based conflict
and
those arising out of sympathy.
In this overview of the small genres, the most pervasive of
the traditional
forms, we have been examining the traditional elements of the rhetoric
of everyday discourse. This is an area which demands a great deal
more observation and analysis from folklorists. Some recent
studies
from sociologists and sociolinguists have shown that there is a
traditional
structure to conversations, or at least such a severe limitation of
vocabulary
and syntax that items of conversation which occur are highly
predictable
(see Bernstein: he gives a number of other studies in his
bibliography).
And this predictability has been pointed to as an element of esoteric
group
identification: “the [restricted and traditional] code will develop
wherever
the form of the social relation is based upon some extensive set of
closely
shared identifications, self-consciously held by the members”
(Bernstein
61).
We have not investigated the occurrence, nor the invention,
of these
in-group expressive phenomena. We know little about the
functioning
of special languages in specific groups. It is clear from casual
observation, however, that in-groups like gangs, clubs, secret
societies,
and occupational units under severe stress, folklore develops as an
esoteric
statement of groupness and reflects the common aims and practices of
the
group and their shared ideals. The amount of apartness felt by
the
group and the amount of anxiety under which they exist will be
reflected
in the amount of traditional expressions developed and the intensity of
the life of such items. Even our concept of the family may
ultimately
have to be described in terms of the shared expressions which arise out
of the shared experiences.
University of Texas
Bernstein, Basil. 1964. “Elaborated and
Restricted Coda:
Their Social Origins and Some Consequences,” American Anthropologist
66, No. 6, Part 2: 55-69.
Clarke, Kenneth and Mary. 1965. A Concise
Dictionary
of Folklore. Bowling Green, Ky.
Degh, Linda. 1956. “Processes of Legend
Formation.”
In Proceedings of the IV International Congress for Folk-Narrative
Research
in Athens, Georgios A. Megas, ed., Athens.
Dundes, Alan, and E. Ojo Arewa. 1964. “Proverbs
and the
Ethnography of Speaking Folklore,” American Anthropologist 66,
No.
6, Part 2: 70-85.
Fife, Austin E. 1964. “Christian Swarm Chorus
from the Ninth
to the Nineteenth Centuries,” Journal of American Folklore 77:
154-9.
(Roger D. Abrahams’ trans. from the French.)
Jansen, William Hugh. 1959. “The
Esoteric-Esoteric Factor
in Folklore,” Fabula 2:205-211. (Reprinted in:
Dundes,
Alan, ed. 1965. The Study of Folklore.
Englewood
Cliffs, N. J., pp. 43-51.)
Leach, Maria, ed. 1949. Standard Dictionary
of Folklore,
Mythology and Legend, New York.
Moore, A. W. 1891. The Folklore of the Isle
of Man.
London.
Simmel, Georg. 1955. Conflict and the Web of
Group Affiliations,
Kurt H. Wolf, trans. Glencoe, Illinois.