Conference examines power of storytelling

“Your grandmother was absolutely terrified to leave home, but she steeled herself and got on that plane bound for America, and our family has been here ever since …”

Scholars are realizing that stories like this, lovingly passed between the generations, record the history of immigration, assimilation and heritage. From Thursday-Saturday, Nov. 11-13, scholars will explore the power of narrative in preserving the past, reflecting the present and anticipating the future.

Wisconsin always has been a cultural crossroads, home to a number of Native peoples as well as East Coast Yankees, Scandinavians, German-speakers, Southern and Eastern Europeans, Asians, Mexicans, Central and South Americans, Africans, Bosnians, Croatians, Albanians and more.

“We hope to come to understand how personal life stories interact with traditional stories,” says Ruth Olson of the Max Kade Institute and the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures, sponsors of the conference.

A highlight of the conference will be two storytelling concerts, one on Nov. 12 for “serious”” tales of cultural contact, the second on Nov. 13 for humorous stories of community. Both will begin at 7 p.m. in the Pyle Center, 702 Langdon St.

The rest of the conference will focus on how stories help preserve languages and dialects, how children learn from narratives, and how stories, ethnic identity and language are connected.

“That’s what makes this conference so great for students and the general public — they’ll get a good sense of the wide range of narrative and how we use them every day,” Olson says. “They’ll also be able to learn about some of the innovative programs that scholars and educators are using that involve stories.”

For example, Olson cites author and scholar Jack Zipes (“To Be or Not to Be Eaten: The Survival of Traditional Storytelling”), who will deliver the keynote address at 6 p.m. on Nov. 11 and will discuss his teaching of storytelling in the Twin Cities; and musical folklorist John Berquist, who will relate his own stories about working with teenagers in Chicago.

The entire conference is free and open to the public. All sessions will take place in the Pyle Center. For more information or a complete schedule, visit the Max Kade Institute’s Web page or contact Antje Petty at (608) 262-7546/apetty@wisc.edu.