Title: Contraband

General Information about Item:

• Verbal folklore: folk speech
• Language: English
• Country: USA

Informant Data:

• The informant is a Dartmouth ’18 female. She is active in the Native American Community on campus, SPCSA, and Sigma Delta. She is a Government and Native American Studies modified with Anthropology double major from Martha’s Vineyard. She went on cabin camping in September 2014, but never led a trip or was on a croo.

Contextual Data:

• Social Context: Students are first introduced to the concept of contraband–items that they are not allowed to bring–on their packing list. It is again mentioned when they check in for trips with H-croo. The informant specifically references contraband when items are collected the first night of trips in Leverone Field House (to be given back upon student’s return to campus).

• Cultural Context: Contraband within the DOC trips culture refers to prohibited items for the purposes of safety or for liability reasons such as alcohol, or drugs. It also includes non-environmentally friendly or bug-attracting toiletries in accordance with trips “leave no trace” policy, which is another important value for the trips program and the outing club. Of course, since the purpose of trips is to allow students to get to know their trip leaders and their peer group, phones and other electronic distractions are also not allowed. Finally, personal medications are given to trip leaders to administer, placing a larger amount of responsibility on the leaders. In the larger US context, contraband refers to illegal/smuggled goods.

Item:

• Contraband is any item taken by H-croo or trip leaders at the beginning of trips and includes alcohol, drugs, certain toiletries, cell phones and electronics, and personal medications. Contraband, unless illegal by US law, is returned to students upon their return to campus after trips.

Transcript of Informant Interview:

Sammie: you head over to Leverone and I remember they grouped us in certain areas and you pull out your sleeping bag. They search you for alcohol and take your deodorant and stuff. It’s also no drugs and no phones.

Collector: If you have meds too?

Sammie: yeah you’d give them to your trip leaders. It’s a lot of power on students to be—it’s a lot of responsibility. You go in and you think these upperclassmen know everything and now we’re the same age as them as I’m not responsible enough to handle someone’s medication. Yikes.

Informant’s Comments:

• The informant later mentioned that on her cabin camping trip specifically, she thought is was funny that they were not allowed to have “signs of civilization” such as their phones or toiletries even though their cabin was within hearing distance and sight of the road and was also meant to have electricity.

Collector’s Comments:

• As you can see, the informant viewed the responsibility of trip leaders to administer medication as a big responsibility. She recognizes the social mechanism of this practice in further establishing trip leader authority, beyond their superior knowledge of Dartmouth, over tripees (likely so that students will listen in case of emergency). She also considers the effects of this practice and her view of upperclassmen as a freshman to contradict how she sees herself as a senior now.
• I also think this is an interesting example of how universal rules are applied to trips and create a common experience for students, despite differences among the “outdoorsy” rigor of various trip types.

Collector’s Name: Clara Silvanic

Tags/Keywords:

• Contraband, DOC Trips, No phones, prohibited items