Newswise — By combining the advancing tools of technology with time-honored techniques of interviewing and storytelling, this Christmas can be an ideal time for people to hear and preserve eyewitness accounts of life experiences from loved ones for future generations, says an historian at Baylor University’s Institute for Oral History.“One thing almost all Americans share is regret that when we were children, we did not listen better when our parents, grandparents and older relatives or friends told stories about people and places alive only in their memories,” said Lois Myers, associate director of the institute. “Such oral traditions may be the most fragile links to our family history.” With high-quality sound or video recordings, people can uncover and preserve the origins of family rituals — such as Christmas celebrations, common sayings or even recipes, Myers said.
“Today’s technology makes it possible to record the voices of your family storytellers, not only to keep the story alive but also to preserve accurately their version of the story in their own words,” she said. “Recordings allow family historians to capture the stories of those reluctant relatives who may never write their stories. Recording also inspires creatively sharing with younger generations through web presentations and audio or video documentaries.”
Myers shared some suggestions for generating memory talk among family members:• Encourage the storyteller to concentrate on one memory at a time, describing sight, sound, smell, touch or taste.• Generate stories from a list of word association prompts, such as emotions — happiness, sadness, anger or fear: “firsts” — first car, job, home, date, vote; or “favorites” — book, food, movie, TV show or hobby.• Create personal stories using life stages alongside a chronology of significant historical events over the decades. What was it like being a child during the Cold War? What music did you listen to in the 1970s? • Devise a memory map of important twists and turns in the road of life — events, decisions, people or possessions. • Develop an interview agreement form acknowledging the informant’s voluntary donation of information, transferring the interviewee’s rights to the researcher and addressing permission or restrictions for publication and distribution.• Whenever possible, make your family oral history an intergenerational experience. Invite young family members to contribute questions or do the interviews. Interview the children.• For a relaxed, candid interview, allow the informant time to prepare. Fully explain the purpose of the interview.• Prompt memory recall through challenging and perceptive inquiries. Ask broad, open-ended questions; be a good listener; and allow the interviewee time to think.• Introduce every recording with a statement of the date and place of the interview, the full names of the interviewer and interviewee and the purpose of the project.• When difficult situations arise, use tact, persistence, and respect. Allow narrators to give their own interpretations. Avoid burdening the story with your own perspectives, which may not reflect the narrator’s life and times. • Think far into the future about who will take care of the histories you collect. Since most family history also contains stories of community interest, consider placing interview copies in a local archive or library.
*The Baylor University Institute for Oral History provides aid for creating and preserving oral histories. To learn more from the Workshop on the Web, visit http://www.baylor.edu/oralhistory/index.php?id=23560
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 16,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Baylor sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and is a founding member of the Big 12 Conference.
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE FOR ORAL HISTORY
Through dynamic, recorded interviews, the Institute for Oral History preserves the stories of individuals who helped create the fabric of history and whose lives, in turn, were shaped by the people, places, events and ideas of their day. The Institute has recorded and preserved oral histories since 1970, earning along the way a strong reputation for multidisciplinary outreach to both academic scholars and community historians by providing professional leadership, educational tools, and research opportunities.
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