Constructing the Folk Cultural Sphere: Agency, Media and Authority
Topelia, A 109, 4pm
This paper explores the dynamics of agency, media and authority in the maintenance and construction of the folk cultural sphere – i.e. a society’s generalized perception and understanding of traditional culture. The phenomenon is explored through a series of cases, organized more or less chronologically, beginning the with medieval manuscript technologies and Snorri Sturluson’s Edda, followed by print and textual representations of Sámi in the seventeenth and eighteenth century, a living ethnographic exhibition of Sámi in the nineteenth century, current fieldwork documenting Rotenese and Tetun traditions in Indonesia, and, finally, a community-driven living ethnographic exhibition of a so-called tourist village on the island of Java. The final discussion takes an overview of the perspectives gained from the individual cases to consider their broader implications.