The University of Wisconsin Press
Popular Culture
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"A
Night with the Hants" Popular Culture Only someone who has lived in the state can understand the extent to which death and the hereafter, and its manifestation in various aspects of supernatural phenomena, dominate the lives of present-day Alabamians. This interest is morbid, almost pathological. No other topic so thoroughly captivates the undivided attention of the folk. Consequently numerous tales are told about wakes (called “sitting up”), corpses, ghosts, and, probably most numerous of all, hants (as almost invariably haunts is pronounced). Concomitant with this intense preoccupation, however, is a revulsion, a realization that there is something unhealthful about this interest in death and the dead. Of the some 150 stories of the supernatural in this volume, approximately one-half are humorous. The whole group demonstrates how important such stories are, and the infinite variety they can have. The second most important type of folktale in Alabama is that which is told mainly or only for amusement, as the more than 75 examples in this volume indicate. Alabamians are and always have been fun-loving. Or at least they have always realized the value of humorous stories as salt in a diet which often would be otherwise unbearably bland. In addition to the humorous twisting of supernatural tales, these stories range from the earthy and scatalogical to the simon-pure. The next most important category of Alabama folktales is those “true” stories which “actually happened.” In this group there are many anecdotes and short (sometimes long) stories about actual happenings; such tales are retold numerous times, and listened to with rapt attention, even though at times they are far from exciting or amusing. Numerous others, however, did not happen to the teller, but in the interest of verisimilitude and interest he has localized and personalized. This volume represents a good cross section of the folktales of Alabama, of all citizens from all parts of the state. At the time of publication, Ray B. Browne was chair of the department of popular culture at Bowling Green State University and secretary-treasurer of the Popular Culture Association and the American Culture Association. He is author and editor of some 30 books.
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LC: 76-043449 GR
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