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Mumming in Newfoundland
| Article
# : |
13834 |
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Section : |
CULTURE
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| Issue
Date : |
12 / 1988 |
2,226 Words |
| Author
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A.M. Powers
Anthropologist A.M. Powers has done fieldwork in the Canadian
Maritimes and the Caribbean. She is a freelance author who
occasionally teaches in colleges in the New York area. |
It is shortly after midnight on the eve of the New Year. A loud knock is heard at the door; it reverberates through the silent home. When those inside do not answer, the knocking grows louder and more insistent and is eventually accompanied by the cry of "Mummers allowed?"
For the uninitiated, especially for very young children, these events create an aura of excitement and fear. Excitement because it is the Christmas season and this scene will be played out repeatedly over the twelve days of Christmas—December 26 through January 6. And fear because the mummers represent the unknown—they are strangers. Indeed, it can be argued that it is precisely because the mummers are strangers that the ritual persists. Historically, Newfoundlanders have always been wary of outsiders, and this ritual can be said to shape and be shaped by the social order.
In referring to outsiders, one often hears Newfoundlanders comment "You don't know who they are or what they might do." This admonition is also true of mummers and generally is the reason given by a host who hesitates to invite them in. Some people will not allow mummers to enter their home, just as they will not invite a real stranger in until more is known about them. In some small coastal settlements, it is customary for men to marry only local women, because they are not outsiders. Women from other locales are often considered to be untrustworthy.
False faces and places
The art of masking and the presence of frightening figures in pivotal rituals throughout the year are well documented in many cultures.
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