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The American Folk Tradition
Folklore The American Folk Tradition
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What is folklore? Any of the beliefs, customs, and traditions that people pass from generation to generation. Consists of : ballads, fairy tales, folk tales, tall tales, legends, myths, epics, arts and crafts, dances, games, rhymes, proverbs, riddles, songs, celebrations, etc.
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Where does folklore originate?
Folklore originated out of the oral tradition - stories told at festivals and around campfires, rather than shared in print.
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Characteristics of folklore
Theme – a central idea, message, or insight that is revealed within a story; sometimes theme is universal – seen in stories in many different cultures and throughout different time periods. Heroes and heroines – larger than life figures whose virtues and deeds are often celebrated in stories from the oral tradition.
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Storytelling techniques
Hyperbole – exaggeration or overstatement, either for comic effect or to express heightened emotion Personification – human characteristics or personality given to nonhuman subjects, such as animals or natural elements. Idioms – expressions – such a “It’s raining cats and dogs!” – that develop in a language, region, community, or class of people that can not be understood literally.
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Types of Folklore Myths – tales that explain the actions of gods, goddesses, and the heroes who interact with them. These stories often attempt to explain the cause of natural phenomena. Creation Myth – a story that explains how the world came to be Fables – brief stories that often feature animals that act like humans. Fables usually end with a moral, or proverb, that is directly stated.
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Types of Folklore continued
Tall Tales - types of folk tales that use hyperbole. The tales often involve a hero who performs impossible feats. Tall tales are a form of legend – stories based on fact that become less true with each retelling. Epics - long narrative poems about larger-than-life heroes who engage in dangerous journeys, or quests, that are important to the history of a nation or culture.
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Types of Folklore continued
Folk Tale – anonymous stories passed down by word of mouth generation after generation. Urban Legend – exaggerated story of today’s society.
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