Folklore is a dynamic process and it appropriates the changes in society while simultaneously retaining the elements of tradition and the past to ascertain its continuity of tradition and contemporary relevance. Considering folk practices, the earlier studies had encountered the stereotypical notions constructed around the folklore materials and folklore processes. And some of these notions implied the characteristics of folk practices as traditional, rurality, outdatedness, superstitious, archaic, static, not contemporary, and, to the extent, as irrational. Thus, the later studies on folk practices had to prove the role of folklore in explicating the complex relationship humans have with the natu1re, cosmos and supernatural on the one hand and in contemplating the reflections of their creativity, unconsciousness and their cognitive encounters in their socio-cultural life on the other hand. However, there are two striking features, namely, anonymity and community representation, that make folklore a more individual creation with community ownership and it facilitates the study of folklore folk practices as a first step towards understanding the dimensions of community life. Therefore, while representing the ethos of a community, folklore and folk practices show inclusiveness and accommodativeness by providing either intersection between different communities or by identifying points of convergence or divergence. By taking a few examples from the Santal community of Odisha, this article emphasizes the point that folk practices are rich and meaningful sources that play a significant role in understanding the community life by relating them with “cognition and values” (Dundes 1975:xi-xii) and also by making us realize how they “bring unconscious content into consciousness” (1975:xi)
Performance is an interesting subject of study and it is the point of intersection for many academic fields within humanities and social sciences. The studies on performance, thus, could provide opportunities for exploring different aspects of human behaviours and their creative reflections on the matters that are intrinsic to the concept of performance. In pursuit of performance studies, one could come across various knots that connect performance with every aspect of the socio-cultural life of people by redefining the stereotypical notions of “stage”, “actors” and “audience.” Further, the studies on performance could not be placed on a single trajectory as several approaches, perspectives and orientations that have emerged ever since the delimitation of performance happened by opening up its boundary for interdisciplinary studies lead by the undefined ‘performance studies’ of Richard Schechner. However, by dealing with the performance as a live presentation in all perceived forms of “stages”, a significant question has been asked in this paper as a token of beginning on the “problematic” presence of audience as outsiders (non-native and non-belonging) who, by their nature of reception and response, are understood as those who have no concern either for the performance or for the performers. While each form, in the folkloristic sense, is comprising of its natural context along with a dedicated or defined audience, it seems to be a surprising phenomenon as it developed over a period of time as a result of the prodigious and irresistible globalization process. Thus, the unintended and unsolicited transformation, as an impact of globalization, in the traditional and modern performances has shaped the nature and role of ‘audience’, making it an insignificant and irrelevant entity for the consumption with aesthetic appreciation and conviction on the values demonstrated. So this article problematizes the nature of audience in the decontextualized performance context by drawing insights from performance studies, semiotics, and other cognate disciplines. Based on the insights drawn from the fieldwork on Sarhul festival held in Ranchi district a few years ago, this paper argues that the role of audience cannot be understood unless there is a clear perspective on the nature of performance and performance tradition as defined by the community.
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