Preface
L
ike other researchers in the field of children’s folklore, I have enjoyed dis-
covering the remarkable range of children’s traditions.
Children demonstrate
their creativity by coming up with new versions of old rhymes, songs, narratives,
and other expressive forms; they also tend to preserve certain patterns that have
pleased previous generations of young people. While doing research for this book,
I have collected legends and songs that resembled the ones I learned as a child in
the 1950s and 1960s. I have also learned that my students, who have grown up
in a world different from the one I knew during childhood,
have cherished some
of the same traditions, including making forts out of couch cushions and playing
games on neighborhood streets.
This handbook provides an overview of children’s folklore since the late 1800s,
with particular attention to material that has emerged since the publication of rel-
atively recent analytical surveys of children’s folklore:
Children’s Folklore: A Source
Book,
edited by Brian Sutton-Smith, Jay Mechling, Thomas W. Johnson, and
Felicia R. McMahon (1995) and
American Children’s Folklore
by Simon J. Bron-
ner (1988). Since the handbook cannot cover all children’s folklore, it offers texts
that represent major genres and areas of study. Most
examples and texts come
from English-speaking countries, but some come from other parts of the world.
The first chapter of this handbook traces the development of children’s folk-
lore study from the late nineteenth century to the early twenty-first century, with
attention to reflections of social and political change and connections between
children’s folklore and education. Chapter 1 also examines issues related to field-
work with children. Chapter 2 defines key terms, including those that identify
genres of children’s folklore. Examples and texts appear in chapter 3, which pro-
vides contextual information for each item of folklore. Chapter 4 covers chil-
dren’s folklore scholarship from its earliest days to our current era, and chapter 5
viii Preface
puts children’s folklore in the contexts of literature, films, television, and mass-
produced dolls, toys, and games. The bibliography and list of Internet resources
at the end of the book give the reader enough resources to begin children’s folk-
lore research.
I would like to thank the many kind people who have helped me find infor-
mation and texts for this handbook. Among them are Kelly Armor at the Erie Art
Museum, Simon J. Bronner at Penn State Harrisburg, Carole Carpenter at York
University, Irene Chagall of the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage at the
Smithsonian
Institution, Pamela Dean at the Northeast Folklore Archive of the
University of Maine, Bill Ellis at Penn State Hazleton, June Factor at the Uni-
versity of Melbourne, Janet Gilmore at the University of Wisconsin– Madison,
Diane Goldstein at Memorial University at Newfoundland, Janet Langlois at
Wayne State University, John McDowell at Indiana University,
Richard March
of the Wisconsin Arts Board, W.F.H. Nicolaisen at the University of Aberdeen,
Elliott Oring, Azizi Powell of Cocojams.com, Kelly Revak at the University of
California at Berkeley, Karen Prowda, M.D., Jan Rosenberg of the Folklore and
Education section of the American Folklore Society, Brian Sutton-Smith, J.D.A.
Widdowson at the University of Sheffield, Randy Williams
at the Fife Folklore
Archive of Utah State University, and Peggy Yocom at George Mason University.
Faye McMahon at Syracuse University deserves particular thanks for her gen-
erosity in offering books and helpful insights. I also want to thank my father,
Frank H. Tucker, my sisters, Sarah Owens and Margaret Mitchell, and my cous-
ins, Linda Faatz, John Treworgy, and Susie and James Whalen. One son, Peter
Gould,
taught me numerous songs, rhymes, and games; the others, Tom Gould
and Chris Powell, also taught me many things, and so did my granddaughter
Emilie and students in my folklore classes. I also want to thank the Maerz family
for their help and friendship.
Special thanks go to the photographers who took the wonderful pictures in-
cluded in this book: Martha Cooper,
Martha Harris, Buzz Hays, and my hus-
band, Geoffrey Gould, whose support made a big difference at every stage of this
book’s preparation. Lastly, I want to thank my editor, George Butler, who has
made Greenwood’s Folklore Handbooks such a fine and useful series.
