Review of The Legacy of Dell Hymes: Ethnopoetics, Narrative Inequality, and Voice ed. by Paul V. Kroskrity and Anthony K. Webster

Abstract

What we have here is a smorgasbord of lively work that revisits and extends the legacy of Dell Hymes, that resolute Oregonian who consolidated ethnopoetics to recognize eloquent voices beyond the bounds of our literary canons. Those already practicing some form of ethnopoetic research will take delight in worthy applications and expansions of familiar analytical models. For those whose research focus lies elsewhere, this set of eight original articles, introduced by co-editors Paul V. Kroskrity and Anthony K. Webster and discussed in separate commentaries by Richard Bauman and Charles Briggs, will serve as an invitation to a significant field of interdisciplinary research focused on the social role of language, especially as harnessed to the task of telling stories in speech and song. Indeed, by articulating fresh perspectives on ethnopoetics, narrative inequality, and voice, this collection asserts a broader relevance for students of human societies.