Folklore Research on Chinese Opera and Festival

context. The big categories of folklore include scholarship on verbal folklore, customary folklore, and material culture. Folklore genres— covering topics such as proverbs, myth, and ostension—is the book’s longest section. Women’s folklore, unilinear evolution, and the devolutionary premise are among the special topics covered in the final section. Folklore 101 is certainly useful in the right contexts. When taken on their own, the chapters are helpful, basic introductions. For example, students who wish to learn the history of folklore scholarship on superstition would do well to read Jorgensen’s chapter “Superstition & Folk Belief.” As its name suggests, Folklore 101 is perhaps best suited for introductory folklore classes. The short chapters serve as useful and accessible overviews of folklore concepts. For example, Jorgensen’s four-page chapter on legends would introduce new students to the core ideas. If this is the book’s true purpose, it achieves its goal. Because the book as a whole isn’t bound by a single thesis, it works well on a chapter-by-chapter basis. Although Folklore 101’s target audience is primarily students and academics interested in folklore studies, Jorgensen dislikes university gatekeeping and encourages non-academics not only to be aware of folklore theory, but also to stay up-to-date with the field. By providing a comprehensive overview of the field, Jorgensen has compiled in a single volume the main concepts of folklore that will benefit both academic and non-academic readers.