The folklore of small things: Tradition in group culture

To understand the intersection of tradition and Performance, folklore requires a robust theory of how smallgroup culture shapes the creation and retention of expressive forms. Community depends on the activity of groups in which participants believe that they have shared pasts and prospective futures, hold a common identity, engage in Joint activities, and are found together. It is through the practices of individuals working together, sharing interpretive frameworks and constructing Joint meaning, that Community and collective action is possible. The relations that are established among people and between groups - the existence of a set of interaction Orders - allows the continuation of Community. In this, participants incorporate stability, innovation, and even conflict, as long as there exists a recognized commitment to the group and its culture.