Tom Mould (Butler University)
In 1996, Choctaw elder Estelline Tubby recounted the prophecy of the Third Removal. Her performance fit within a genre of Choctaw prophetic narratives well established within the community. Yet more than two decades later, and only after years of fieldwork with Latter-day Saints, I realized that Estelline’s story also fit within another narrative tradition: that of LDS personal revelation. Having focused primarily on her ethnic identity, I missed the impact of her religious identity. This paper explores how theories of intersectionality and contextualization offer folklorists methods of narrative analysis that help identify key interpretive contexts while simultaneously revealing the artistry of cultural bricoleurs.
Part of 02-05 Reassessing Key Moments in Ethnography, Theory, and Disciplinary History [hybrid], Thursday, October 13, 10:30 am–12:30 pm