Muduvan Oratures: an ethnopoetic study with translation of primary texts

Abstract

This thesis is an ethnopoetic study of the oratures of Muduvan tribe, one of the prominent tribal communities of south India, living on the bordering regions of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. They have many rich oratures of their own as part of folklore handed down from their forefathers. The dialect they use has apparent similarities with both Malayalam and Tamil. Even though this thesis is an ethnopoetic study, it attempts to document and bring the oratures into mainstream academic field via translation. Since no such study has been done on their oratures, this thesis is an initial attempt to collect, document and study them in the academic field. The primary sources of the thesis which include songs of different genres, tales, proverbs and riddles, are collected by intense field work by staying with them in some their settlements in the Idukki district in Kerala. The different genres of oratures are put in different chapters along with their transliteration and translation. The first-hand information gathered from the field regarding their culture and tradition are incorporated in the thesis whenever necessary. The thesis is divided into five chapters. Chapter I Presents a brief description of Muduvan s geographical location and socio-cultural background which helps one to understand the subsequent chapters. Anthropological and sociological data available so far along with first hand information gathered from the field are part of the discussion. The field of study is described along with the primary sources selected. In this chapter the need for preserving oral literatures which are vanishing and placing them as a vital part of the literary canon is discussed. An overview of folklore in general and in India along with various theories is also described. A summary of folklore studies in South India especially in Tamil Nadu and Kerala done so far is given. This chapter also presents the concept ethnopoetics and its relevance in literary criticism.