Thanksgiving Interdisciplinary Thematic Unit

POST ELECTION HEALING AT THE THANKSGIVING DINNER TABLE FOR ALL AMERICANS

Crossing the “triviality barrier,” that is, understanding and explaining why studying folklore is important, not just entertainment. “Triviality barrier” was coined by Brian Sutton-Smith in a 1970 article, “Psychology of Childlore” in _Western Folklore_.)

NOTHING IN CULTURE IS TRIVIAL

NOTHING IN CULTURE IS TRIVIAL

NOTHING IN CULTURE IS TRIVIAL

Nothing in culture is trivial – studying folklore involves understanding the meaning and significance of everyday commonplace things, words, etc.

Every project must answer:

1. What is its significance?
2.  What is its relevance?
3. What is the impact of having studied/produced it?

No one has to justify studying math, history, and science. Folklore gives insight into our humanity. Those studies have enriched mankind for generations. Studying folklore not only allows intellectual pursuit it documents society and allows for benchmarks as civilization moves from one point to the next in its own crazy path. It rescues procedures / art / lifestyle that would otherwise be lost.

What the study of folklore can bring to a child or anyone:

1. new ways of communicating
2. cultures other than our own
3. our own culture/traditions
4. expression of feelings or ideas
5.  learning problem solving techniques

Music:

Grandma What Are You Cooking For Thanksgiving? Caesar originally recorded the song in 1988.

Shirley Caesar won’t be cooking “beans, greens, potatoes, tomatoes” at Thanksgiving this year.  by MESFIN FEKADU

The legendary gospel singer, who is enjoying viral success with a remix of one of her sermon-songs featuring a line referencing food items, says she’s not cooking this year during the U.S. holiday. “I ain’t cooking nothing,” 79-year-old Caesar said with a laugh in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Friday. “Absolutely zilch.”

The Grammy-winning singer has become a hot topic online after her song, the 9-minute “Hold My Mule,” was re-created with a new addictive beat. On the song, Caesar tells the story of “Shouting John,” who is told he is too loud and cannot dance in church because of his excitement. But Caesar later sings in a live version of the song that John fires back, explaining that God created this land and he’s been blessed with “beans, greens, potatoes, tomatoes, lambs, rams, hogs, dogs, chicken, turkeys, rabbits. You name it!”

 

THANKSGIVING TURKEY RECIPE FROM THE FIRST NATION AMERICAN INDIANS AND EVERY STATE. 

FIND POTLATCH – The Tradition of Giving / Sharing
Share a Meal  Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Fresh Tarragon
Potlatch is a very famous cultural practice studied by ethnographers. “Potlatch is a festive event within a regional exchange system among tribes of the North pacific Coast of North America, including the Salish and Kwakiutl of Washington and British Columbia.” Sponsors of potlatch give away many useful items such as food, blankets, pieces of copper, and many other various items.”

FIND THE IROQUOIS THANKSGIVING BLESSING
“Ohenton Kariwahtekwen” Greetings to the Natural World

WOODY GUTHRIE THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND

Pete Seeger said June 1967
When Woody Guthrie was singing hillbilly songs on a little Los Angeles radio station in the late 1930s, he used to mail out a small mimeographed songbook to listeners who wanted the words to his songs, On the bottom of one page appeared the following:

“This song is Copyrighted in U.S., under Seal of Copyright # 154085, for a period of 28 years, and anybody caught singin it without our permission, will be mighty good friends of ourn, cause we don’t give a dern. Publish it. Write it. Sing it. Swing to it. Yodel it. We wrote it, that’s all we wanted to do.”

Definition “poor folkist”. . .

Woody Guthrie’s “poor folkist” term, coined in his letter to Stetson Kennedy was using the common vernacular and everyday wisdom to move folks emotionally and politically. You may assume the stress is on the first word (“poor folkist”), implying that the concern is for “poor folk,” and aligning the folklorist whose subject was “poor folk” with socialist and communists and other left “ists.” Or, that “folkist” may on occasion have been a pun for “focused”– potentially an ironic comment on the more formally-driven folklorists and political theorists in his midst.

Web Resources for Integrated Thematic Teaching