ABSTRACT
In this essay, Oring discusses the Déghian proposition that the distinguishing feature of the legend genre is belief He argues that, despite the fact that folklorists have largely adopted this definitional proposition, the wider context of a given legend is the collector/scholar’s own disbelief Thus the legend category is a by-product of folklorists’ own ideology. Were folklorists to suspend their disbelief however, he argues, legendry would immediately resolve itself into the category of news. Dealing effectively with the challenge of the mass-media will therefore involve folklorists in overhauling several of their traditional theoretical assumptions. The essay, which is taken from Southern Folklore 47 (1990): 163–177, is illustrated by reference to newspaper articles concerning the infringement of domestic space by wild creatures, a common theme in contemporary rumor and legends.
