Radio drama as an educational tool for promoting intangible heritage: men and women of the sea in Chile

Abstract

Radio drama is a genre appropriate for contributing to the acoustic memory, and to the promotion and transmission of intangible cultural heritage, hence the importance of exploring the relationship among broadcasting systems, education and culture. This paper presents two cases, one based on the traditional knowledge of boat builders, and the other on the experience of women dedicated to the recollection of shellfish, both from Haulaihé, Región de Los Lagos, Southern Chile. Using a qualitative methodology, the voices and testimonies of these sea people were recollected and transformed into two radio dramas, aimed at reconstructing the memory and cultural identity of this zone. Broadcasted throughout most of the region by the most tuned local radio, they combined fiction and reality in order to recreate traditional stories, ways of life and the sounds of the village. This initiative allowed local inhabitants to appropriate cultural goods through this non-traditional learning experience.