Courses in Folklore and Ethnomusicology use fascinating approaches to understanding culture, history, and music. Introductory classes consider the broad roles of folklore and music in human lives.
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Our courses examine specific traditions in places such as the United States, Ireland, the Caribbean, China, or Africa. In looking at how traditions are created and carried forward, we pay close attention to topics that touch our lives every day: health and illness, superstition, urban legends, social movements, commemoration, the internet, cultural diversity, and more.
The popular courses below give a sense of what is available to undergraduates interested in the rich history of stories, music, and other forms of expression around the world.
Nearly every culture on Earth has a tradition of hidden people, supernatural beings who live in a society that mirrors but also distorts our own. This course presents a broad overview of these beings, their role in human societies, and various past and present approaches to their study.
After considering examples throughout global history of music created in response to crisis and disaster, ranging from the medieval plague and HIV/AIDS to the Holocaust and Black Lives Matter movement to periods of political turbulence, class conversation will focus on disasters explicitly related to health and the environment.
I have learned so much from my Folklore classes. The most significant thing I have learned is to study what I love. Because of this major, I know that the possibilities for the future are endless.
Emily Coleman, B.A. 2013 (High Distinction)
The College of Arts