Author Archives: Andrew Maney

酒发心腹之言

Nationality: Taiwanese
Age: 20
Occupation: actor
Residence: LA
Performance Date: 4/4/16
Primary Language: Chinese
Language: English

酒发心腹之言

Jiŭ fā xīn fù zhī yán (Chinese)

literal translation: Wine sends feeling to the belly of words

 

My roommate, JC, told me this Chinese proverb. He is from Taiwan, a country heavily influenced by Chinese culture (the island was a part of China until 1945, China still considers it a territory). Taiwanese enjoy drinking and having a good time. This proverb talks about the possible dangers of drinking alcohol. J explains, “It means that wine makes people say stuff.” He elaborates, “It is used as a warning. Because when people get drunk they often run their mouths and say things they probably shouldn’t.” Alcohol warms the belly, but this proverb is saying that alcohol also warms the mouth (“belly of words”) and makes it more willing to move.

Taiwanese culture emphasizes politeness. It is considered rude to talk about intimate personal matters in public. When people drink, however, they are inclined to over-share, which can be humorous or disastrous. J explains how he and his friends would use this jokingly when things got a little out of hand with alcohol. He explains how adults use the phrase to warn about the consequences of alcohol. J and his friends, on the other hand, use it to encourage drunken friends to spill secrets.

It is amusing how the younger generation has taken a traditional proverb and changed its purpose. This is a perfect example of the fluidity of folklore. The proverb has its original intended meaning, but it continues to exist in new forms as new generations redefine the meaning. Folklore isn’t static. It changes to suit the modern culture, growing and expanding.

Bread Crust and Curly Hair

Nationality: American
Age: 21
Occupation: student
Residence: San Diego
Performance Date: 3/12/16
Primary Language: English

SS is from San Diego. Her grandma used to tell her that eating the crust of bread would make her hair curly. S tells me, “I didn’t want curly hair, so I would never eat the bread crusts.” To this day S still feels uncomfortable eating crusts. Her grandma really convinced her that this superstition is true. I believe this shows the power that older figures have on the young, especially with folklore. Children take their parents’ and grandparents’ words as law, because it is really their only source of information for the first few years of their life. This explains how parents can influence their children’s behavior so much through various folk beliefs (a theme I keep coming upon in my research).

The superstition that bread crusts give you curly hair is actually an old folk belief. The belief probably emerged a few hundred years ago when curly hair was associated with being healthy. Bread is packed with calories, and it is a low-cost food that almost anyone ate to stave of starvation. A malnourished person might lose their hair, while a healthy one would have a full head of (possibly curly) hair. This is probably the origin of this belief.

Furthermore, the crust is the healthiest part of the bread. Packed with antioxidants, I can see how the belief that it would aid in a more fuller head of curly hair. Curly vs. straight hair, however, is determined by genes, not diet. But this tendency to explain a mysterious scientific phenomenon (genes) with a more easy to comprehend explanation such as diet is a common theme in folk beliefs. These beliefs arise from the lay-person, not scientists. Analyzing them gives interesting insight into how we comprehend our bodies.

Pura Vida

Nationality: Costa Rican
Age: 20
Occupation: student
Residence: LA
Performance Date: 4/22/16
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

SB is from Costa Rica, a small country with a rich, proud culture. They have a phrase in Costa Rica that S says all the time: Pura Vida. It means “Pure Life,” and it is somewhat of a motto for the country. S explains how everyone is always saying Pura Vida. “Their all-time favorite phrase is ‘Pura Vida,’ ” she says. “It is a way of reminding others that life is unrepeatable and that maybe, just maybe someone’s problems or current situation are not as bad as it seems. If everyone lives in a ‘pura vida lifestyle’ it means that there is cooperations and support from the people around you.”

Pura Vida is a phrase of goodwill. It captures the spirit of the country, which is consistently ranked as one of the happiest nations in the world. “Costa Ricans strive to live life to the fullest,” S says. This can clearly be seen in their favorite phrase.

I think it is interesting how an entire country has a single phrase that unifies the people through a common way of life. As S explains, people say the words daily; it is more than just a motto. “Pura vida has complete a wide range of meanings,” she tells me, “and can be used at anytime to replace simple words like ‘Hello’, ‘bye’, ‘thank you’, ‘all good’, ‘you ok’ and many more.” Like any folk speech, it means much more than just the literal words. The significance is in how people use the phrase. Since it is really only a Costa Rican slang, the people are proud of their phrase. Saying it identifies one as a real Costa Rican, or tico, as they call themselves.

Because of this, “Pura Vida” has been bastardized a bit by tourism. It is on everything in Costa Rica, from stickers to shirts to posters. Tourists come to the little country expecting to see the “Pura Vida life.” The nation certainly uses the phrase as a marketing tool, which could make one question the authenticity of continued use of the phrase. I asked S about this inconsistency between the meaning of the phrase and its capitalistic use in tourism. She said that while Costa Rica certainly sells the phrase, “It is still an important part of the local culture. And it means so much more to us than people see in all the tourism stuff. Pura Vida really is the most important thing we say. It is something I live by every day.” This is the power of folk speech. It can define an entire nation of people.

Barges

Nationality: Irish-American
Age: 20
Occupation: student
Residence: Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Performance Date: 3/3/16
Primary Language: English
Language: French

MS used to go to summer camp every year. Her camps had many interesting traditions and funny pieces of folklore that she often brings back and performs for me. Her favorite pieces are the songs, of which there are many. Here is one:

Barges, I would like to go with you
I would like to sail the ocean blue
Barges, have you treasures in your hold
Do you fight with pirates brave and bold?

Out of my window, looking in the night
I can see the barges flickering light
Starboard’s glowing green and port is glowing red
I can see the barges from my bed

Barges, I would like to go with you
I would like to sail the ocean blue
Barges, have you treasures in your hold
Do you fight with pirates brave and bold?

How my heart longs to sail away with you
As you sail across the ocean blue
But I must sit beside my window clear
As the barges sail away from here

Barges, I would like to go with you
I would like to sail the ocean blue
Barges, have you treasures in your hold
Do you fight with pirates brave and bold?

Out of my window looking in the night
I can see the barges flickering light
Taking their cargo out into the sea
How I wish that someday they’d take me

 

M describes this song as one of longing. “It’s actually much more depressing than most of the other songs we sing,” she elaborates. Most of the camp songs are silly and lighthearted, but this one touches on serious themes of growing up and flying free. She says that the girls would be very moved whenever they sang this song. It seems to me that it is a song that allowed the girls to reflect. M describes camp as wild, hectic, and sometimes overwhelming. But, as she says, “The whole camp was at peace when we sang this.”

M explains how nothing is written down for the song. Each year the older girls pass all the traditions, songs, and stories down to the younger kids by singing the songs together. Music is an excellent way to pass on folklore because the contents of the story, as well as the melody, aid in memorizing the lyrics. In this sense, a folk song is really just a folk tale. There are similar elements and tools that aid in performance. For example, there are phrases that are repeated throughout.

 

A published version of this song, along with many other classic camp songs, can be found in Jack Horntip’s Camp Meriwether Camp Song Book.

Oom, Plucky, Plucky

Nationality: Irish-American
Age: 20
Occupation: student
Residence: Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Performance Date: 3/3/16
Primary Language: English
Language: French

MS used to go to summer camp every year. Her camps had many interesting traditions and funny pieces of folklore that she often brings back and performs for me. Her favorite pieces are the songs, of which there are many. Here is one:

She sat on a hillside and strummed her guitar
strummed her guitar, strummed her guitar
She sat on a hillside and strummed her guitar
strummed her gui-ta-a-a-ar

Oom, plucky, plucky, oom, plucky, plucky, oom, pluck, pluck, pluck, ZING!
Oom, plucky, plucky, oom, plucky, plucky, oom, pluck, pluck, pluck, ZING!

He sat down beside her and smoked his cigar
He said that he loved her but, oh! How he lied
They were to be married but somehow she died
He went to her funeral but just for the ride

He went to her grave site and laughed ’til he cried
The grave stone fell over and squish-squash he died
She went up to heaven and flittered and flied
He went down below and sizzled and fried
The moral of this song is: never tell lies

M explains the song as being a “harsh lesson about love.” She elaborates, “But really it was just some fun thing we all sang around the campfire.” I commented on the graphicness of piece. M response was, “That’s what I love about it. We didn’t screw around at my camp. Everyone thinks girls’ summer camp is like pretty princesses and stuff, but no, we were intense and gross. We sang about death.” She laughs.

Every time she performs this song for me she has a lot of enthusiasm. There are very specific hand gestures that accompany the song as well. M explains how nothing is written down for the song. Each year the older girls pass all the traditions, songs, and stories down to the younger kids by singing the songs together.

The song tells an entertaining story. The contents of the story, as well as the melody, aid in memorizing the lyrics. In this sense, a folk song is really just a folk tale. There are similar elements and tools that aid in performance. For example, each line is repeated many times (it doesn’t show this in all of the lyrics above for brevity’s sake).

Furthermore, one can see how this song in particular would be popular for a girls’ camp. The story is about a man getting his come-uppance for lying to the girl about being in love. She goes to Heaven, but he goes down to Hell. The song is empowering to women. It doesn’t condemn the girl for whimsically falling in love. In fact she still goes to Heaven. The man, however, burns for lying about love. That is the sin. The last line even reinforces this with “The moral of this song is: never tell lies.”

 

A published version of this song, along with many other classic camp songs, can be found in Jack Horntip’s Camp Meriwether Camp Song Book.