October 8

We talked about Jan Harold Brunvand's essay: "The Boyfriend's Death" - and discussed the features of folklore and urban legends. We identified folklore as a story, custom, or ways of doing things surrounding a material creation (like a quilt or a garden) that are traditional in that:
- they are passed from generation to generation by word of mouth
- they exist in different versions or variants
- they are associated with different folk groups or identity groups

Urban legends are a particular kind of folk story; they are:
- believed to be true - but false
- set in the recent past
- told in terms of a set of recurring features - but with variations
- about regular people (rather than mythological beasts or gods)
- often told to teach a lesson or confirm a set of beliefs about the way the world is
- told by groups who often are similar or connected to the characters in the story in terms of life situation and beliefs

We looked at several versions of "The Boyfriend's Death" and then made a list of all the features that were (mostly) the same in all the versions. We then used this list to speculate about the story's themes - or the assumptions or values connected to its symbollic message. While "The Boyfriend's Death" seems a "horror" story about the weird murder of a boyfriend and the rescue of the girlfriend - folklorists analyses of this text suggest that it is about the dangers of adolescent sexuality with an accompanying message about appropriate behavior for males and females.

We then looked at the "Lights Out" urban legend about gang initiations and the warning not to blink your lights at cars with their lights turned off. It seems this story originated much earlier - and was about Hell's Angels - before it took the current form about the Bloods. Also - it seems that the story wasn't told about the Bloods until after the group gained national attention at the time surrounding the Los Angeles riots. So you might as your selves - which features of the story were "conserved" => kept in all versions of the story? What purpose of function do these features serve with respect to the story's message? And then - what IS this story's symbollic message about the way the world is, and how to behave to protect yourself?

Portfolio. In the computer lab you worked on your portfolios. You are expected to post what we have done so far: the baseline essay; any homework you want me to look at; the required writing for the summaries; and the required work for the response essays. After Tuesday I will grade your portfolios + add up your attendance/participation grades & give you a "grade so far" for the course. You will have an opportunity to revise writing in your portfolio for a different grade at the next portfolio check (listed on calendar).

For Tuesday:
1. Finish your portfolio.

2. In class, you will begin work on a group presentation on an urban legend (the assignment sheet for the presentation is posted under course documents).
Look over the urban legend links listed below (and check out snopes) Your assignment is to pick one or two urban legends you would be interested in analyzing.

Urban legends you may have heard of:

Snakes in ball pits(check out the links to other stories re Ball pits)


Virginia Tech Murders


Bad news brings more tragedy


Lights Out! - we did this one in class - but you might want to take a closer look.


Bloody Mary


(Dead) loved ones come to the rescue


Surprise identity for a sexual partner (check out related stories)