Folklore and Fakelore: Essays Toward a Discipline of Folk Studies

About this book

Richard M. Dorson was a Distinguished Professor of History and Folklore at Indiana University and Director of its Folklore Institute. Whether describing his own fieldwork in Irelands County Kerry or with Maine lobstermen analyzing the medias glamorized Paul Bunyan creation or John Henrys place as a folk hero attacking fakelore the misguided popularization of folklore or introducing the fascinations of the new urban folklore Dorsons personal style is free-wheeling even flamboyant. Nor does he shrink from controversy; witness his crusades his combats with politicians and university administrations. These far-ranging subjects reflect the diverse interests of a lifelong folklorist one still enthusiastic about working in this rapidly expanding field. His original thinking will interest amateur and professional alike.