|
Jan Harold Brunvand (born March 23, 1933) is an American folklorist, researcher, writer, public speaker, and professor emeritus of English at the University of Utah. Brunvand is best known for popularizing the concept of the urban legend, a form of modern folklore or story telling. Urban Legends are "too good to be true" stories〔 that travel by word of mouth, by print or the internet and are attributed to an FOAF: friend of a friend. "Urban Legends," Brunvand says, "have a persistent hold on the imagination because they have an element of suspense or humor, they are plausible and they have a moral."〔 Though criticized for the "popular" rather than "academic" orientation of his book, ''The Vanishing Hitchhiker'' and others,〔 Brunvand felt that it was a "natural and worthwhile part of his job as a folklorist to communicate the results of his research to the public."〔 For his life time dedication to the field of folklore, which included radio and television appearances, a syndicated newspaper column, and over 100 publications (articles, books, notes and reviews),〔 Brunvand is considered to be "the legend scholar with the greatest influence on twentieth-century media."〔Lindahl, Carl, ("Some Legendary Takes on Hurricane Katrina" ), American Folklore Society, March 7, 2012〕 == Biography == Brunvand was born on March 23, 1933, in Cadillac, Michigan, to Norwegian immigrants〔 Harold N. Brunvand and Ruth Brunvand. He and his two siblings, Tor and Richard,〔 were brought up in Lansing, Michigan. Brunvand graduated from Lansing Sexton High School, Lansing, Michigan in 1951. From high school, Brunvand attended Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, where, in 1955, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism.〔 While at Michigan State, he served as second lieutenant in the signal corps.〔 Brunvand went on to earn a Master of Arts degree in English from the same university in 1957.〔〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jan Harold Brunvand」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|