Barre Toelken’s The Dynamics of Folklore is an excellent introduction to the study of folklore. Through the course of the book, richly detailed with examples of his research, Toelken takes the reader on a guided introduction to the field. Towards the end of the book, Toelken’s focus shifts from a generalized overview of the discipline to a more practical, hands-on guide to performing the study.
Toelken’s examples cut across three folk groups. The majority of the discussion of folklore comes from his experiences with the Navajo. Peppered throughout the text, however, are discussions of Northwest logging culture and Japanese American immigrant culture.
Toelken’s experiences with the Navajo provide the richest store of details and open the book for a discussion of perspective. In none of the groups Toelken studied can he be described as possessing an insider knowledge of the culture. His experiences with the Navajo can be described as a threshold perspective. A threshold perspective emerges when the researcher is neither wholly in-group, nor wholly out-of-the-group; they can act within the group smoothly and comfortably, but they do not quite belong. Toelken can speak the language well, and discuss stories with his informants on their terms; yet, as he frequently points out, he is “out of the loop” on many references and jokes. This threshold perspective differs from the approach he brings to loggers and Japanese-Americans, mainly in the knowledge with which he comes to his sessions.
In the outsider perspective interviews, Toelken’s knowledge seems to come mostly from information one could glean from studying the extant literature concerning the group. By contrast, Toelken’s threshold perspective feels lived-in. His insistence on ritual obligations, notably the taboo on coyote stories outside of winter, read as an understanding reached after lengthy immersive experience in the group.
The awareness as a researcher of different notions of discussing folklore is perhaps the most useful aspect of the book. It is easy, as Toelken points out, to come to a study with the assumption that knowledge may be freely shared; but this is not necessarily the case. Toelken gives several examples of how the violation of the informant’s trust can damage further research with the group.
The Dynamics of Folklore was a great introduction to the study of folklore. It has primed me well for my further reading in this subject, and will do the same for any reader.
Would I recommend The Dynamics of Folklore? Yes.
Score: 4.1/5
Would I keep this on my bookshelf? Probably not, the text was an excellent primer, but I don’t see myself coming back to it. However, Mrs. Cheddar would likely kill me if I got rid of it before she takes the comprehensive exam for her master's degree in folklore.
-Mr. Cheddar
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