Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
Being Of Appalachia: Embodying the Region
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
This paper draws its theoretical foundations from an ongoing line of philosophical and post-Cartesian phenomenological research (Merleau-Ponty; Butler; Noë) focused on the body as a means of knowing and being in the world. The documentation of “body schema” is present throughout Appalachian archives, whether formal, institutional, performed, or lived. From dance-related sources and oral histories to more complex references in song texts and literature, we have access to multifaceted, yet often ignored, descriptions of physicality in Appalachia. The primary question is: what do Appalachian bodies, movement, and gesture reveal about being of Appalachia? This project, initially supported by the Appalachian Sound Archives Fellowship at Berea College, aims to explore and document embodied Appalachia, both differences and continuities across time, from heavily prescribed movement such as dance to the ways we interact in our daily lives. The goal is to push the limits of an Appalachia that is often defined by geographic space and our capacity to mindfully construct an imagined community to further include the knowledge held in Appalachian bodies.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Christopher A. MIller is an independent archivist, digital collections manager, cataloger, and information consultant living in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia. His research focuses on the role of archives, libraries, and museums as spaces for the performance of culture.
Being Of Appalachia: Embodying the Region
This paper draws its theoretical foundations from an ongoing line of philosophical and post-Cartesian phenomenological research (Merleau-Ponty; Butler; Noë) focused on the body as a means of knowing and being in the world. The documentation of “body schema” is present throughout Appalachian archives, whether formal, institutional, performed, or lived. From dance-related sources and oral histories to more complex references in song texts and literature, we have access to multifaceted, yet often ignored, descriptions of physicality in Appalachia. The primary question is: what do Appalachian bodies, movement, and gesture reveal about being of Appalachia? This project, initially supported by the Appalachian Sound Archives Fellowship at Berea College, aims to explore and document embodied Appalachia, both differences and continuities across time, from heavily prescribed movement such as dance to the ways we interact in our daily lives. The goal is to push the limits of an Appalachia that is often defined by geographic space and our capacity to mindfully construct an imagined community to further include the knowledge held in Appalachian bodies.
