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“My dad’s side of the family is Jewish so they had a lot of like food and meals that they would eat either for special occasions or like just throughout the year because it’s like Jewish food. And the one that’s carried through to my immediate family is matzo ball soup because it’s a really good remedy for like a cold or just general sickness normally in the winter so the cultural tradition here is getting lots of matzo ball soup and using it as like a cure to sickness when we’re not feeling well.”
Context
ML says that not a ton of Jewish customs carried over to her immediate family, but matzo ball soup was one that did because of their belief in its comforting and curing powers. She remembers eating it when her or her sister were sick, and she said that eating it did make her feel better.
Analysis
ML’s story is an example of material culture, specifically foodways, as well as folk medicine. The tradition of eating matzo ball soup contains religious and traditional values in her family, but also showed a long standing belief in its remedial and comforting powers. ML notes that not many other Jewish meals or traditions were passed on to her family, showing that some beliefs or pieces of folklore are stronger or hold more meaning and are able to be passed on more easily even as other traditions of the same folk group fade away. For ML, this belief was enforced by evidence, as she said that eating matzo ball soup did genuinely make her and her sister feel better, which only serves to enforce the folk belief. ML’s story with the soup is a great example of Kaptchuk’s discussion on healing rituals, as the soup represented a sensory experience, family, and hope along with the nutritional value, all of which combined to comfort ML. I think this is a very powerful idea, because my mom would make a specific noodle dish when my brothers and I were not feeling well, but I remember the love and the care that the meal represented more than how I felt after eating it.
Author Archives: Ren Leong
Interlocking Arms
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“I played varsity basketball all 4 years in high school, and one like common thing that would always come up throughout the season was interlocking arms. On like senior night, the seniors would interlock their arms with each other before the game as their names were getting announced to like walk up and take their pictures and get flowers and stuff. I think it was like a way of showing that we were together, kinda like one group, one team sort of thing. But also during like clutch free throws at the end of the game everybody on the bench would interlock arms for the free throws. It was kind of like a superstition, something we did for good luck. You see it a lot on like TV too like in college basketball games they’ll do it and also in soccer games during penalty shootouts a lot of times the players in the back will have their arms interlocked, so yeah like the same thing we were doing.”
Context
DZ remembers interlocking arms as an unspoken act that would come up throughout the season for his high school basketball team in moments of solidarity (senior night) and in clutch moments when they needed the best luck. He says that the whole team would always participate, and no one would have to say anything; if one person started it, everyone would follow suit. DZ notes that this wasn’t something independent to his team and that he has seen it on TV a lot, so even the first time that his team did it he had an understanding of the meaning behind the act.
Analysis
DZ’s story of interlocking arms contains a lot of different folkloric themes. He says that the gesture was always unspoken and that he knew the meaning behind it from the very first time that his team locked arms, showing how folklore can be shared and enacted through example. The gesture also become a core part of the basketball team’s identity, representing unity and the team’s bonds in valuable moments. This gesture also served multiple purposes. In moments like senior night, it was used as somewhat of a rite of passage, marking the seniors transition into a new beginning. In clutch moments during games, it served as a superstition with magic behind it, a gesture that would create good luck and influence the outcome of the game positively. These different uses are an example of Santino’s point that rituals are both symbolic and instrumental, as interlocking arms represented team togetherness and helped create good luck. DZ saying that the gesture was not one created by his team, but rather a popular gesture among athletes shows that it is a core piece of lore among the athlete folk group, and also that it exists in multiplicity and variations around the world. I, for one, always noticed this gesture by sports teams in games I watched on TV, so I thought it was very cool that somebody I knew engaged in it in their own team as well.
Circle (OK sign) Game
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“When I was in like middle and high school, there was always a game where anybody could make like an OK sign with their hand and hold it below their hip, like it had to be below your hip or it didn’t count. And if you looked at it and they saw you looking then they got to neck you (slap you on the neck). This could just happen like any time so you would always have to be careful, and I remember my friends would try to like bait me into looking down so they could neck me. But if I got them they would always say they didn’t look. Looking back, it was like so stupid. But it was just a way to get to hit your friends I think.”
Context
VH explains the circle game as a long running game throughout middle and high school among his friend group. He says that no one ever explicitly taught him the rules of the game, and he feels that it just became a part of his life. VH also points out that the results were very up to personal interpretation and often disputed. This game was always playing, so at any time you could get caught looking. VH also says that he has seen this game on social media and other friends in college knew about it too.
Analysis
The circle game is definitely an example of customary folklore as it is a repeated game that VH learned through experience and participation rather than in any explicit or formal way, which shows how folklore is disseminated unofficially. It’s also a great example of how folklore is constantly evolving and not always clearly defined, as everybody would have their own take on the rules of the game. This game was a manifestation of childhood humor, and also utilizes play frames to slap your friends in an “acceptable” way. The circle game is a great example of the young boy folk group, as it exists in multiplicity and variations outside of just one school/friend group, as VH notes that he has seen it on social media and this was a game that was often played in my school as well (in a totally different state).
Christian Ritual – Blessings, Bible Verse, Appreciations
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“Every day, my grandpa on my dad’s side sends me his blessings and a Bible verse in the morning, and I write it down every day in my notebook and I say three things that I’m grateful for and I also say well like what I guess the Bible like means to me so yeah that’s like a ritual or tradition of my faith that I do.”
Context
Having grown up in a family of devout Christians, IK explains that the daily routine of sending blessings and a Bible verse is one that his grandpa does for all members of his family. For IK personally, he also adds saying his appreciations and the meaning of the Bible to his daily routine as a way to honor his faith and start off each day strong.
Analysis
This is an example of a ritual in IK’s life that exemplifies his belief, which in this case is his Christian faith, and is an example of Kaptchuk’s ritual theory as repeated routines that create some emotional change. It represents a core piece of his family lore that has been passed from his grandfather to every member of his family and that he will continue to share to his kids and grandkids. This ritual also serves a specific function, as for IK the blessings, Bible verses, and appreciations are a way for him to honor his faith before the start of each day and go into each day with the strength of God behind him. For IK, this routine is not just a habit, it is a ritual that serves a specific powerful purpose each morning. As a Christian myself, this story strengthened my place in the Christian folk group because my mom and my grand uncle also send me daily Bible verses, and it’s cool to see that it is a common practice and one that I should continue to honor and eventually pass down to my kids.
Paper Crane
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“In middle school, my crush, like that I liked like a lot. He would make paper cranes.
And he would make them at like, every single class in the back of the classroom. And I remember being like one day like, “oh, you should, like, teach me how to make the paper cream, you know, whatever. And so I learned, but then he made one that was, like, really good and he’s like, no, you can have it.”
And so he gave it to me, and I still have it today. It’s on my, it’s on my shelf, in my home.
And like my home is kind of like a childhood, like my shelf is like a collection of my childhood. Like I have all these little things, but I still have that crane. And then I tried to make it just now, and it came out as a boat.
And I think I’m like halfway there. But like the memory’s in there. Like, my hands are kind of just doing stuff. That’s the story.”
Context
AI tells a story about learning how to make a paper crane from a boy that AI liked in middle school, as well as her memory of him giving them a paper crane that he made, which AI has kept to this day. In attempts to make a paper crane from memory, AI says that she doesn’t remember exactly how to do it, but still remembers bits and pieces of the process.
Analysis
Paper cranes are a form of material culture and folk art that carry a lot of meaning such as peace, healing, and hope. They’re also a form of origami/paper folding creations like paper airplanes and fortune tellers that are taught to kids as ways to play and be creative. In AI’s story, the meaning and value of a paper crane come from the physical representation of a strong memory she had with her crush, and the fact that she still has the same paper crane so many years later shows the power and value of this specific moment in her life, and how materials are able to carry memories and meanings. AI’s story highlights Witzling’s idea that handmade objects can communicate through form, materials, and social context. AI’s crush was able to teach and create an endearing moment through gifting the paper crane and paper cranes have embodied these childhood moments and feelings for AI ever since.