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512 |
MEMOIR ON THE STUDY OF |
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detail in other customs mentioned in the classification. Thus, with regard to the funeral customs indicated in " Jenny Jones," we have not only a ceremony of burial, but the courting of a maiden or maidens by a band of suitors, the opposition of the mother or guardians to their suit, the putting forward of domestic occupations as pretexts for refusal; there is also the illness, dying and death of the maiden, the manner of her funeral indicated by the colour selected for her burial, followed by the burial itself, the singing of the lament or funeral dirge, and, in some versions, the rising of the ghost or spirit of the departed. This game in its best versions is played in line form. But in those versions where two children only play the parts of "mother" and "Jenny Jones," there is also evidence of the tendency of the game to develop into the individual form.
Again, those games in which " guessing" occurs remind us of the important part that guessing or chance plays in the beliefs of the savage and uncivilised. A person who, by a guess, discovers a special person out of a number, or the exact number of articles concealed in a hand or under a foot, has something of the supernatural or witch-element about him. This is largely the foundation of the belief in witchcraft and the sorcerer. It is not surprising to find, therefore, the guessing-element largely extant in the dramatic game. The "guesser" is usually chosen by lot by means of the counting-out rhyme; the leader then proceeds to confuse the guesser's or witch's mind by re-naming secretly the rest of the players. He calls the "guesser," and in a doggerel rhyme (the remains or imitation probably of an incantation), tells him to pick out or name a certain person or thing. If the guess is correct, the " guesser " takes that person to his side, indicating power over that individual or thing. If the " guesser " is unsuccessful, he is scouted, mocked, and ill-used.
I now proceed with the second classification referred to on p. 461. Of the games classified on pp. 461-470, ante, it.will be found on examination that nearly all of them are dramatic in form. This leads me at once to suggest that so important |
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