Summer Session 8/19-9/15

FLR 250 Introduction to Folklore w/ Prof. Daniel Wojcik (WEB)
This course introduces students to the research questions, theoretical orientations, and fieldwork methods used to study folklore, and therefore satisfies the Arts and Letters group requirements. Students will examine concepts that are central to folkloristic inquiry, survey the social groups and folklore genres that have preoccupied folklorists, investigate the meanings and functions of folklore, and explore relationships between folklore and social issues. The course provides an overview of research methods and theories of culture, and explores topics such as narrative, genre, identity, gender, race, and ethnicity as these apply to everyday life, and the meanings of cultural heritage and expression in cross-cultural perspectives. Students will develop critical thinking and research skills, as well as their abilities to communicate orally and in writing, and will be given the tools and opportunity to document and analyze folkloric expression through interviews, fieldwork, and a research paper.