Author Archives: Troy Furniss

Typing Drill

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/26/17
Primary Language: English

Informant: My informant, S. G. is 19 and was born and raised in Southern California. Sawyer lives in Chino Hills and has two mothers who both work as P.E. teachers for high school and middle schools. She has one older sister and one younger brother with the family having ties to its Swedish heritage.

Folklore: “Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country.” This phrase was meant to act as a way to improve your typing skills when people still used typewriters. Sawyer’s mom learned this when she was in college and was a common drill used to teach beginners. She later taught S. G. when she began learning how to type but doesn’t have the same practical meaning when being performed on a computer.

Analysis: The reason why people used this phrase as a typewriter drill was because it filled the 70 space line on a paper rather than being the best phrase to teach typing. Today, there are new drills being used to teach typing but this phrase did come up when I was learning how to type in middle school.

Mother Proverb

Nationality: American/Swedish
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/26/17
Primary Language: English

Informant: My informant, S. G., is 19 and was born and raised in Southern California. S. G. lives in Chino Hills and has two mothers who both work as P.E. teachers for high school and middle schools. She has one older sister and one younger brother with the family having ties to its Swedish heritage.

Folklore: “A son is a son until he gets married, but a daughter is a daughter forever.” S.G. heard this saying from her mom before she left for college. The saying is meant to show that a son will get married one day and his wife will fill the gap left by the mother, but a daughter will always need the help of her mother to guide her. Her mom told her this to show her that she’ll always be there for.

Analysis: I agree with the saying above in terms of how women have such a large impact on male lives and how we rely on them more than we know. It’s also symbolic of the special bond shared between mother and daughter.

Hawaiian Warriors

Nationality: Ameican
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 4/20/2017
Primary Language: English

Informant: My informant, D.L., is 20 and was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. D.L. mother works as an admissions director for his high school. He has one older brother who also attends USC. Both of D.L. parents are full Chinese, but have completely adopted the Hawaiian culture. D.L. spends most of his free time at the beach and considers himself more Hawaiian than Chinese.

Folklore: “There is a rule in Hawaii that you’re not supposed to whistle at night. The night marchers are ghosts of ancient Hawaiian warriors and they’re said to roam the islands at night visiting old battlefields and sacred sites. Whistling at night is said to summon the huakai po (night marchers). If you make eye contact with the night marchers, you’ll die and be forced to march with them for all of eternity. If you happen to have an ancestor marching, however, no one in the procession can harm you.” D.L. was told this story from one of his teachers in elementary school to try and scare the kids in his class as a joke. D.L. doesn’t actually believe in the myth and thinks of it as just a story to scare kids.

Analysis: This myth is more of a ghost story that sounds familiar to a story I heard when I was growing up. I look at this myth as just a scary story and nothing more.

For more information on the myth, see http://www.to-hawaii.com/legends/night-marchers.php

Demigod Maui

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 4/20/2017
Primary Language: English

Informant: My informant, D.L., is 20 and was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. D.L. mother works as an admissions director for his high school. He has one older brother who also attends USC. Both of D.L. parents are full Chinese, but have completely adopted the Hawaiian culture. D.L. spends most of his free time at the beach and considers himself more Hawaiian than Chinese.

Folklore: “There is the Legend of how the demigod, Maui, was the one who created the Hawaiian Islands. Maui is said to have created Hawaii’s islands by tricking his brothers. He convinces them to take him out fishing, but instead catches his hook upon the ocean floor. He tells his brothers that he has caught a big fish, and tells them to paddle as hard as they can. His brothers paddle with all their might, and being intent with their effort, did not notice the island rising behind them. Maui repeats this trick several times, creating the Hawaiian Islands.” D.L. heard this legend growing up in school from his parents when he asked how the islands were created. He was also told after the islands really came to be with volcanoes, but he was more interested in the story version. D.L. likes how this story is a part of his culture and likes telling people about these myths.

Analysis: I really enjoyed this story and think it’s a fun and creative way to tell children how something so incredible and hard to believe could have happened. This story reminds me of the legend of Paul Bunyan and how he created the Grand Canyon when he dragged his axe behind him when he was tired after a long day’s work. It is interesting to see how similar stories originate in completely different cultures.

Summer Sun

Nationality: American
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Performance Date: 4/20/2017
Primary Language: English

Informant: My informant, D.L., is 20 and was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. D.L. mother works as an admissions director for his high school. He has one older brother who also attends USC. Both of D.L. parents are full Chinese, but have completely adopted the Hawaiian culture. D.L. spends most of his free time at the beach and considers himself more Hawaiian than Chinese.

Folklore: “Māui’s next feat is to stop the sun from moving so fast. His mother Hina complains that her kapa (bark cloth) is unable to dry because the days are so short. Māui climbs to the mountain Hale-a-ka-lā (house of the sun) and lassoes the sun’s rays as the sun comes up, using a rope made from his sister’s hair. The sun pleads for life and agrees that the days shall be long in summer and short in winter.” D.L. was told this story from his teacher in elementary school. The legend, Maui, plays a large role in Hawaiian folklore and is the basis of many creation stories.

Analysis: This is a fun legend that is told to kids in Hawaii. This reminds me of summer and how the days get longer. I have great memories in the summer from staying out later at the beach with the sun still out.