Rosemary V. Hathaway is an associate professor of English at West Virginia University, where she teaches folklore, American literature, and young adult literature.
Request Academic Copy
Please copy the ISBN for submitting review copy form
Description
Introduction 1. The Origins of the Mountaineer 2. From Slouch Hat to Coonskin Cap: The Hillbilly Mountaineer versus the Frontiersman 3. The Rifle and the Beard: The WVU Mountaineer in the 1960s 4. Policing the Student Body: "Mountain Dears" and (Sexy) Girls with Guns 5. Inclusion, Exclusion, and the Twenty-First-Century Mountaineer Notes Bibliography Illustration Credits Index
"Folklorist Rosemary Hathaway's well-researched and engaging book explores the evolution of the WVU 'mascot' the Mountaineer from its preindustrial origins to the present. Imaginatively analyzing personal, local, and national sources, Hathaway reveals how the ongoing transformations of the Mountaineer have both built upon and challenged regional and national stereotypes in ways that reflect competing conceptions of freedom and identity." Anthony Harkins, author of Hillbilly: A Cultural History of an American Icon "With her personal, familial connection to the subject and background as a folklorist, Rosemary Hathaway has written a well-crafted and thoroughly researched narrative with nuance, a strong historical foundation, and important analysis. Mountaineers Are Always Free has both relevance to the current political moment and the power to endure." Emily Hilliard, state folklorist and founding director of the West Virginia Folklife Program