Critical Review #1

Handler and Linnekin’s article on tradition examines the idea that “tradition cannot be defined in terms of boundedness, giveness, or essence” (273). In a sense, the are trying to prevent us from falling into a presumptive state of mind, where we interpret tradition as a group of customs merely passed on, unchanged, from past to present. Instead they define tradition as being one of symbolic process rather than a collection of tangible objects. They explore the cultures of Quebecois and Hawaiians hoping to gain insight into “one of the major paradoxes of the ideology of tradition, that attempts at cultural preservation inevitably alter, reconstruct, or invent the traditions that they are intended to fix” (288). What they discovered was that both cultures believe that identity is created through tradition as evidenced by the Quebecois struggle to preserve any nationalist sentiment with time-honored heritage,  despite differing views on the concept of nationalism. The Hawaiians on the other hand place an emphasis on the rural villagers when attempting to preserve notions of tradition. What is interesting to note is the comparison of the Quebecois nation as being a “natural, living species”, which brings about contradictory view of tradition when comparing it to Handler and Linnekin’s definition of tradition as being “an unbounded, interpretive process” (273).

Discussion Question: Comparing Kroeber’s characterization of tradition as one of “long, unchanging temporal continuity” and Shils’ contention that tradition must continually change, where is the limit when too much change alters the identity behind a tradition and how does this relate to the major paradox of the ideology of tradition that Handler and Linnekin present?  Also, Shils’ distinction between tradition and fashion relies on the fact that a tradition has to last over three generations. Does tradition have to be an well-established norm before it can be considered a tradition and how does this relate to the connection between the traditions of the past and the traditions of the present?