For my potential Wikipedia article to improve upon, I propose the page on the Bumba-meu-boi festival. As of now the article only includes a lightly detailed lead. The current lead attempts to summarize the story behind the festival in a sentence or two with a short explanation of the most important characters played. This, in of itself is a gap in the festivals Wiki page. I look to add more details behind the story behind the festival as well as all of its characters and what they symbolize. Other gaps in the article I intend to improve upon are the history of the festival, where it occurs, how long it lasts, and its deep connection to Brazilian culture.
I Think I can do Wikipedia a great service by vastly improving this article because Bumba-meu-boi is one of Brazil’s largest celebrations, yet it isn’t covered nearly as well as Brazil’s main festival, Carnival because it isn’t publicized as much. The festival is also deeply rooted in the nation’s many cultures including that of native tribes. Additionally, the festival is an old tradition that dates back to the late 1800’s, from which it has slowly grown from a single small town to the whole country.
Because the festival is not as well known outside of Brazil there are not large amounts of translated literature on it, like you would find on the Carnival festival. However, there is still an ample abundance of studies on it which will provide me with everything I need. One great source titled The Coexistence of Folk and Popular Culture as Vehicles of Social and Historical Activism: Transformation of the Bumba-meu-boi in Northeast Brazil identifies the complex hybrid cultures within the festival. There are also plenty of books including An Interdisciplinary Study of The Ox and the Slave (Bumba-meu-Boi): A Satirical Music Drama in BrazilI.
Hi Thomas! Shedding light on the Bumba-meu-boi festival is interesting. As we discussed in class, Brazil is very diverse and is a mixture of many cultures, so providing more detail on this festival will reveal even more different cultural aspects. I find it intriguing that this festival is rooted in cultures from indigenous people as I do not think other festivals emphasis native tribes that much. What town exactly celebrates this festival?
I think this is an intriguing topic to explore. It will add diversity to the knowledge of Brazil festivals to the general public.
As someone who has never heard about this festival, I think expanding the article is a great plan so people like me can read it. I think the sources you identified are very interesting.