Tir Cyffredin - Shared Land: The creation of identity, cultural tradition and community in the Dyfi Valley, Mid Wales.

Abstract

ABSTRACTTir Cyffredin - Shared Land: The creation of identity, cultural tradition and community in the Dyfi Valley, Mid Wales.A portfolio of five films with a Companion TextA thesis submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree ofMaster of Philosophy in Ethnographic Documentaryin the Faculty of Humanities2010ANNE MARIE CARTYSCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCESThis research project was conducted in the Dyfi Valley in rural Mid Wales. The population in this area may appear homogenous, but within the overall community there are, although the boundaries are blurred, roughly four different groups, of whom two are Welsh and the others mainly English incomers. These groups share a geographical space but are socially fragmented. The main output of the research is a portfolio of five documentary films with a Companion Text. Each of the films addresses ways in which each of these groups develop rituals to make them feel at home and create a mythology around these performances in order to legitimise their presence in the area and to create, affirm or reinforce a sense of community. The Companion Text is a supporting document, providing, firstly, a theoretical and ethnographic context for the films, and secondly, a vehicle for discussing the general anthropological and methodological issues raised by the films.

Date of Award	1 Aug 2011
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Paul Henley (Supervisor) & Sharon Macdonald (Supervisor)