The Exploitation of Tradition

Abstract

In Selling Tradition, Jane Becker takes her readers on an interesting history lesson about the evolution of tradition in American society. She poses captivating evidence that explores questions as to what extent tradition in America, particularly in the Appalachian region, has been exploited by modernity. To understand how traditions became “modernized,” one has to go back and see why they were so appealing to consumers to begin with. In this paper, I follow Becker exploration of the reasons for and the results of the movement from tradition to modernity in the Appalachian South.