Author Archives: Miriam Bedrin

Folk Remedy: Iodine

Context: The informant, who is Armenian, and I were having a conversation on April 24th, the anniversary of the Armenian genocide. She shared this Armenian folk remedy which makes use of staining skin with iodine with me during this conversation.

Interview Transcript:

Informant: The most ridiculous, like some of the Armenian remedies, like I can see them working, but this one makes… no sense. Like, and it’s been done to me since I was a child. Any ailment you have, whether it be a fever, whether you have a lump on your nose, whether you have warts… For some reason, they truly believe… this… does something for you. Like it chemically does something for you, even though it makes no sense. They take pure iodine, the liquid form. They stain your skin, on your chest and your back, in a hashtag. And… you leave it on you. And they keep redoing it on a twenty four hour basis. And supposedly, after you do that a number of times, your ailment is supposed to completely go away. Disclaimer: it has never worked for me.

Me: What’s the rationale behind it?

Informant: There’s none. I don’t know what it is. They just, they truly believe… I think it’s actually a remnant of a time when Armenians were Pagans. When they believed that there were, you know, demons and um… spirits and all those things. And so I think they believed that the hatch-mark in iodine would… I’m sure back then they had a different chemical, but the hatch-mark is supposed to ward away the evil things. So if there was something lingering in your body, or if there was some… ailment or problem in you, the hatch-mark would deflect it, and it would leave your body.

Me: So it’s more about the shape and not the iodine itself?

Informant: Yeah… I think the iodine is just an instrument because it stains. Iodine stains your skin really well, and it’ll stain it for a while. And that’s the point. Um… because I’m sure they… I mean, I’m sure they could have used henna just as easily. It’s just the fact that it stains your skin, and it has to be the hatch-mark shape on your front, and on your back.

Me: So then like… who would do that to you?

Informant: Um… just whoever’s taking care of you. A mother would do it. A mother… Fathers never touch their kids. You know, a father doesn’t really pay attention to the child’s upbringing, until they’re of a certain age where they can do an internship or start pursuing jobs or they’re in highschool and need life advice or whatever. But the mother’s the primary caretaker… of a child.

Me: So that holds true in Armenia?

Informant: Yeah. That’s… ’til this day. It has not changed.

Analysis:

This remedy is an example of a piece of folk medicine that has been passed down through families for generations. My informant does not believe the remedy works for her, though her parents continue to practice it. The remedy is used to treat a variety of ailments and is not specific to one illness.

Soda Prank

Context: A friend from high school and I were talking over Skype, and during that conversation she told me about some pranks she had pulled on her college friends during the school year.

Interview Transcript:

Informant: There’s one that I do on my friend, where I… he’s obsessed with Dr. Pepper, so I took Sprite, and I poured soy sauce in it, and I gave it to him, and he got very upset, and it was hilarious.

Me: That’s brilliant. Where did you get that idea?

Informant: I got it from like, a website.

Me: Which website?

Informant: I don’t know. You could find it. Then like, another time, we took worcestershire sauce and, um, we filled the bottle half way with Dr. Pepper, and put worcestershire sauce in it, and soy sauce, and some other sauce, and we tried to get him to drink it, but on accident, someone else drank it.

[Laughter]

Analysis:

This prank provides an example of a practical joke that students play on their friends. This informant performs the prank on people she is already close with rather than as a hazing ritual. The prank is also simple and does not cause harm to the target beyond annoyance. It gets its appeal from tricking the target into thinking they are accepting a gift when in reality they are receiving something disgusting.

The Story of the Founding of Rome

Context:

The informant and I were having a conversation in my apartment, and the topic of our families was brought up. I asked him if his parents or relatives had shared any interesting stories or sayings with him. The informant is of Italian heritage, and he said that when he grew up, his father told him the story of Rome’s founding.

Interview Transcript:

Informant: There’s a place called… Alba Longa, no longer known anywhere in Italy. But a place that was ruled by a king named Numitor. Numitor had a brother, um, Amulius, and… he was jealous of Numitor. So he actually seized the throne for him, and he kicked Numitor out and killed all the sons of Numitor. Numitor had one daughter though. Amulius decided to make the daughter, um, Rhea Silvia, a, uh… virgin priestess. She had to remain celibate, but of course, as often is true, the gods can intervene. And so they did. Mars, the god of war, impregnated Rhea Silvia, quote common in Greek mythology and Roman mythology, this idea, and she conceived twins. She birthed them, and Amulius saw and of course was not happy with this because he wanted to ensure that he would have no one to challenge him in his rule. Though he had the twins put in a basket and thrown in the Tiber river. Um… Well, since these children were born of a god, and were semi-divine, they were actually spared by the river, by the spirit of the river, I believe it’s um… Tiberinus, the god of the river Tiber, actually floated them to safety, to the shore. But they were still abandoned, so um… what would they do? They’d starve. Well a, uh, she-wolf found them, um, it’s uh, lupa, very iconic, that the she-wolf found them, and um, quenched their thirst, gave them nutrients. In some tellings of the story, she spent some time protecting the two young. Now, they were fed also by a woodpecker, the story goes. The woodpecker fed them, but the she-wolf protected them, uh… gave them sustenance. But eventually, after a little bit of time, they were found by a shepherd and his wife. They raised the, uh, two boys to become shepherds as well, and they had the names Romulus and Remus. Uh, just as a side note, I’m not sure if you can think of this connection, but if you’re aware of Remus from Harry Potter, um, he can turn into a werewolf. Well… Romulus, Remus are quite related to wolves. Oftentimes when we see depictions of Romulus and Remus in this myth, we see the two twin babes sucking from the she-wolf. That’s a very famous, very, uh, dear icon. Now, they were raised and they became natural leaders. They had no idea though, that they were actually divine. They ended up becoming leaders amongst other  shepherds, and Amulius found out about this and had the idea that they were actually the twins, that they must be. So he captured Remus. Romulus ended up gathering a band of shepherds to save him. And they ended up overthrowing Amulius and restoring Numitor to the thrown. They were actually offered, um, to be the kings together of Alba Longa, but they just had Numitor take the thrown again. But they decided to go off though, and with their band of followers and find a city. Now, Romulus wanted to find a city in the, I believe it’s the… Palatine hill. And Remus the Aventine. They weren’t sure which one they wanted to be the place of the city, so they decided to use augury, which is seeing from the birds some divine sign of what they should do. What would be the most auspicious place. Well… Romulus saw, um, twelve birds. Remus only six. So Romulus concluded he had the more auspicious sign that it was his location that they would build the city. But Remus thought to himself, “Well… I saw the six first though, so it is a more auspicious sign.” Well, Romulus already decided to start working on the city, but Remus was upset, criticizing, thinking it was really his right and that Romulus was wrong, so criticizing him. He held this grudge up. Romulus soon came up with a wall. Remus, in challenging this, actually decided to jump over the wall. Well… but when he did though, Romulus, so angered by this… defiance, killed him. This is, uh, probably the most problematic part of the founding myth of Rome, that, um, Romulus killed his twin brother, and uh… built the city upon that bloodshed, and named it Rome. The city actually had… not too many women. Of some of the shepherds, some of them had wives, but a lot of them did not, so it was a problem. Well, they ended up inviting some of the Sabine people, uh, that were around the area to come to the developing city for a festival, and they ended up distracting the men and taking captive the women. And this led to some conflicts, eventually to a standoff between Rome and the Sabines. Now… the women though, ended up, uh… wanting a, resolution between the two, seeing that it would be quite bloody. So they ended up actually having two kings becoming one entity. But the leader of the Sabines ended up getting into some scandal, some kind of situation, and he actually was killed. So Romulus, he ended up acquiring the territory, being leader of the territory, for the rest of his life acquiring more and more land. Uh… being such a great leader, a very strong person. But he died, eventually, and it’s said he rose up actually, into the sky into heaven, and announced, or expressed, that he would be, then, Quirinus, a certain god that actually, that god really is the form of Romulus. So that god now is often on coins, and people associate that god with Romulus. But then of course, Romulus, Remus, with the she-wolf, that statue, that icon, being very famous too. I often heard that, known about them, heard of their names, understanding their importance. But now, of course, it’s interesting to consider how the founding was of these… these boys that, you know, were human but also divine, but then were raised, in some sense, by a wolf. The idea of the… feral child. That is coming into play here, they had to experience with a wolf, with the wild, and then with the kind of… simple origins as shepherds. It’s interesting also with shepherds, those, you know, guiding sheep, maybe protecting sheep from wolves, but they were, in some sense, raised by a wolf. So, that’s it. That’s it for the legend.

Me: How did you learn about this story?

Informant: From my dad.

Me: In what context would he usually tell it to you?

Informant: Hmm… Um, I’m not sure if I exactly remember. Just when I was little, I remember, I remember it coming up, but I don’t exactly remember what context.

Me: So, um, what significance does this story have to you?

Informant: To me? Um… I’d that say, the personal significance is that it was something my father shared with me, and something that I thought was really interesting. The first time I heard it, this was… something that has been kind of passed down for a long time and has been important to Rome, to Italy. It’s something that people are aware… that people care about. Um, as far as how it’s interesting besides having heard it, and thinking of it as important that way, I’d say it’s always been interesting to me that the story starts with, the story of Rome starts with, like, twins that, were raised in part by a wolf. That seems, like… Who would think that? It’s very interesting to me. It almost seems like Rome, like it’s kind of like those who have come from the wilderness and then they bring something to begin civilization. You know… it’s like, you know, Socrates descending to the people from high. I don’t know… The hermits in the mountains coming down, giving them wisdom. That they kind of came from this situation and grew up from nothing, seemingly, to then… to then being the founders of Rome. And also, maybe more interesting recently, has been, um, has been the killing of Remus, what that means. That’s something to think about.

Analysis:

This narrative is an example of a story which has been performed for many years. While it once held mythologic significance for the citizens of Rome, it is now shared through families and during coverage of ancient Rome in history classes. The informant identified the story’s significance to him as the fact his father shared it with him. Even though the religion the story references has largely fallen out of practice, the story is still entertaining to tell and connects modern people with Italian heritage to their past.

Trojan Marching Band Legend

Context: My informant and I were sitting and talking in a cafe, and he shared this legend he heard during his time with the Trojan Marching Band with me.

Interview Transcript:

Informant: I’m sure this is public information. I can share this. So the Trojan Marching Band, uh, we had some beef with the Bruins across town. Uh, just a little bit. I think it was during one UCLA/USC game where it was at their stadium. It was the Rose Bowl. We decided… to march our pre-game, which is the show before the actual football game, where we end up in a line, I think it spells either “Trojans” or “USC,” and we had strategically made it so everyone had like a bag of either sand… or of poop, or of some sort. I’m pretty sure it was sand. Um. And so we would march throughout the show, and not like make a big deal out of it. And then once we get into the formation of “USC” or “Trojans,” we would drop, we would drop our bags  in the spot that we’re in. And then we would run off the field. So essentially what happens is you leave like this huge like, spelling of “USC” or “Trojans” on the field, and obviously I’m sure they were reprimanded for it. Um, and that’s the story that we tell. I think it actually happened, but I’m not sure.

Me: Do most people regard it has happening, or is it like, a split opinion?

Informant: I think most people regard it as happening. I think it’s like, on a website somewhere. That it actually happened.

Me: And like, when do you usually tell this story to people?

Information: Um, when do we tell this story? I definitely learned about it on probably, like, a… a trip we were on. Because like, we like to reminisce about the history of the marching band, and we always joke about, there’s this perception that the year before was always better than the current year. And better in the sense that they were always a little like, rowdier, more aggressive, more spirited, and a lot courser than the current year. Each year is discerned as a little more refined, a little more politically correct, um, and that’s something that is looked down upon for reasons I don’t quite understand. Um, but yeah. So obviously, to do that again, I don’t think that would ever happen. Um, so that’s why we revere, and we speak of the legend that is old band.

Me: Do you ever hear differences in the way that it’s told, or the story consistent?

Informant: I think the story’s pretty consistent.

Me: Except for like, the sand versus poop thing?

Informant: Probably yeah.

Me: Have you heard that told both ways?

Informant: I think so! I think part of me is like, I probably read it as sand, on the website, or like heard about it as sand, but like, the whole purpose of the story is to like, elevate how rough and tough they were. So like, elevating it to be like, “Oh, there was poop in the bag.” That’s not… outrageous in the slightest.

Analysis:

This legend is an example of a story told within a specific group of people as a source of group pride and unity. The legend can be referenced as inspiration for future group actions and can be looked upon fondly as an example of a noteworthy accomplishment. It also feeds off of the rivalry between the University of Southern California (USC) and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). USC’s campus has a strong football culture, and victories over UCLA, both in football and in other matters, are viewed very favorably.

Singles Day

Context: My informant first told me about Singles Day while we were walking home together after an outing with anime club that took place close to Black Friday. He introduced Singles Day, which takes place on November 11th (11/11), as both the Chinese equivalent of Black Friday and an anti-Valentine’s Day celebration for single people. I interviewed the informant about the holiday at an anime club meeting to obtain a transcript for collection purposes.

Interview Transcript:

Informant: Okay. So… What exactly do you want to know from the Singles Day?

Me: Well like… The way that it’s celebrated. How it came to be. What it means. Stuff like that.

Informant: Okay. So first of all, it’s called “Singles Day” only because the eleventh of November is all “ones,” and it’s single. It actually started probably like two or three years ago. Like there was a guy in a Chinese website. It was just on the Internet, and he made fun of this day. And he was the Amazon of China. It was called Taobao. And they found that this… That they can actually make money from this. Make it some kind of festival. And so they just decided to call it “Singles Day.” And for Singles Day they made it the Black Friday of China.

Me: What type of stuff do people buy?

Informant: Just everything!

Me: Like off the Internet? Or in stores?

Informant: No. Just mainly on the Internet. But… But one thing that’s pretty interesting about it is that the Chinese government doesn’t actually like the term “Singles Day.” So they banned websites who use that name. So now when… We still call it “Singles Day,” but all those Chinese websites and stores, when they are celebrating it, they have to use the term “Double 11.” And so they call it “Double 11 Shopping Festival.” But it’s mainly only like selling things. Last year it went really crazy. Like it even has some, like, some stores are even giving like free mailing between nations. Like because, like they are just earning that much from that single day. And, yeah. It’s pretty crazy.

Me: Um, like who usually participates?

Informant: Well, ironically… Most of them are, um, people in relationships. Like they… Well, basically just everybody, mainly young people. And though it’s called “Singles Day,” there are actually a lot of couples just buy things online, because, you know, discounts. Great discounts.

Analysis:

Singles Day is an example of a holiday that came into existence to mock another holiday. It is popular among the citizens of China despite its being censored by the government. Its celebration is also heavily dependent on Internet usage, as most of the shopping done on this day takes place online. The holiday has become so popular that, ironically, even people in relationships participate in it. The use of the term “Double 11” after websites got banned from using the term “Singles Day” is an example of a people’s continuing to observe a tradition despite interference from authorities.