Triggered to Thinking

Alan Dundes was a prolific writer and a folklorist. I first heard about his work when I completed an anthropology of religion course during my undergraduate years. One of his works that I found both comical and interesting was Sometimes the Dragon Wins: Yet More Urban Folklore from the Paperwork Empire (Dundes & Pagter, 1996). Dundes was an anthropologist and folklorist, so his scholarship also delved into workplace and photocopier folklore. This book is a lighthearted exploration of many examples of modern folklore.

The book examines stereotypes and folklore surrounding different groups in the United States. In versions collected from Montgomery, Alabama, in 1991 and Newark, Delaware, in 1992, Dundes presents examples involving “redneck” stereotypes and perceived failures to conform to middle-class society (Dundes & Pagter, 1996, p. 89).

On list number 45, Dundes and Pagter recorded an example titled “10 Things Amish Do on Spring Break,” which was collected in Gallatin, Tennessee, in 1992. The item listed as number one was “churn butter naked.” This list reflected common stereotypes of the Amish as backward by many Americans (Dundes & Pagter, 1996).

Dundes and Pagter also record an example from a popular cartoon collected from a woman in Stockton, California, in which a man begins making out with a woman only to later discover that it was a man in disguise. This short cartoon was titled “Oh Shit” (Dundes & Pagter, 1996, p. 313).

Dundes and Pagter recorded examples of how women are often not seen as the ones who fart, with this behavior stereotypically confined to men. In an item collected in Berkeley in December 1993, a male-biased commentary stated, “Women do not snore, burp or fart and therefore they must bitch or they will blow up” (Dundes & Pagter, 1996, p. 147). Dundes and Pagter recount this type of male folklore and attempts to avoid responsibility regarding farting. They also provide an example of an elephant farting to send a greeting, collected in Washington, D.C., in January 1985 (Dundes & Pagter, 1996, p. 144).

In other comparisons, they recorded a common example of photocopier lore involving the expression “shit happens.” Examples of how each world religion interprets this phrase are provided on page 135 (Dundes & Pagter, 1996).

Many people dream of winning the lottery, and some may fantasize about then being able to quit their job in dramatic fashion. A piece of photocopier lore collected in Chico, California, depicts a man urinating on his boss. The boss then replies, “I take it you’ve won the lottery” (Dundes & Pagter, 1996, p. 30).

Overall, Sometimes the Dragon Wins is an interesting collection of stories that any student of anthropology or urban folklore should enjoy.

References

Dundes, A., & Pagter, C. R. (1996). Sometimes the Dragon Wins: Yet more Urban Folklore from the Paperwork Empire. University of Wisconsin Press.