Reflections on the Folklife Festival
This first ethnographic study of a folklife festival focuses on festival participants—the dancers, musicians, storytellers, and artisans at a public display of folk culture. These essays investigate the contention by supporters of these events that this form of folkloric representation is as intellectually legitimate as scholarly research.
RICHARD BAUMAN is Distinguished Professor of Folklore and Anthropology at Indiana University. Among his publications are Verbal Art as Performance; Story, Performance, and Event; and Folklore, Cultural Performances, and Popular Entertainments. PATRICIA SAWIN is a doctoral candidate in folklore at Indiana University. INTA GALE CARPENTER is Associate Director and Assistant Research Scholar at Indiana University Folklore Institute.