UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO Castells in the Construction of a Catalan Community: Body, Language, and Identity amidst Catalonia’s National Debate A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology by Aida Ribot Bencomo Committee in charge: Professor Kathryn A. Woolard, Chair Professor Jonathan Friedman Professor John Haviland Professor Jeff Haydu Professor Pamela Radcliff 2020 Copyright Aida Ribot Bencomo, 2020 All rights reserved. The dissertation of Aida Ribot Bencomo is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication on microfilm and electronically: Chair University of California San Diego 2020 iii DEDICATION To Joan and Raúl iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page . iii Dedication . iv Table of Contents . v List of Figures . viii Acknowledgements . x Vita ............................................. xii Abstract of the Dissertation . xiii Chapter 1 Introduction . 1 1.1 General historical context of castells ................. 9 1.1.1 Casteller early performances . 9 1.1.2 Casteller ‘golden age’: a local phenomenon amidst the Cata- lan industrialization . 13 1.1.3 The casteller decline and the emergence of political Catalanism 18 1.1.4 Early 20th century: casteller decline and the emergence of sardanes as a national symbol . 21 1.1.5 Mid-20th century and current period . 26 1.1.6 Recent casteller ‘boom’ . 32 1.2 Research questions and organization of the dissertation . 37 Chapter 2 Castells, Methodology, and Field Sites . 40 2.1 A closer look at castells ........................ 40 2.1.1 The fundamental and technical aspects of a castell . 40 2.1.2 Organization of casteller practice and its structures . 42 2.2 Methodology . 47 2.3 Field sites . 52 2.3.1 Vilatètxtil demographics . 54 2.3.2 Mediterrani demographics . 64 2.4 Concluding remarks . 75 Chapter 3 Physicality and the Body at Castells: embodying "fer pinya" . 77 3.1 Introduction . 77 3.1.1 Why the body? . 81 3.2 Body and physicality in tower building: ‘fent pinya’ at castells . 84 3.3 Casteller clothing . 98 3.3.1 Rehearsal clothing . 102 v 3.3.2 Exhibition clothing . 104 3.3.3 Summary: the semiotics of shirts . 107 3.3.4 The Sash . 108 3.3.5 Conclusion on clothing . 113 3.4 The body and physicality as a form of team-building: drinking together . 114 3.4.1 Opening casteller activity . 121 3.4.2 Closing casteller activity . 124 3.4.3 Affordable membership . 125 3.4.4 Physicality, the body, and beer drinking . 126 3.5 Concluding remarks . 133 Chapter 4 Linguistic Practices at Castells: constructing inclusive and egalitarian rela- tions . 135 4.1 Introduction . 135 4.2 The language in castells: tower building . 142 4.3 Linguistic practices in the pinya and amongst similar-role participants 145 4.3.1 Learning to speak up . 145 4.3.2 Mediating communication . 151 4.4 Linguistic practices amidst power differences . 156 4.5 Linguistic practices outside castell building . 164 4.6 Attitudes on language at castells . 168 4.6.1 L1 Catalan speakers . 170 4.6.2 L2 Catalan speakers . 179 4.7 Concluding remarks . 188 Chapter 5 Semiotic Spaces and the Construction of Local Casteller Identities . 192 5.1 Introduction . 192 5.2 Social spaces: the streets and the plaça . 195 5.2.1 Symbolic view of the construction of social spaces . 197 5.3 The construction and performance of local identity . 202 5.3.1 Distinctive, independent value . 213 5.3.2 Historical and authentic value . 215 5.4 Claiming urban spaces of representation . 221 5.4.1 Shaping the social meaning of public spaces . 226 5.5 Concluding remarks. 231 Chapter 6 The Instrumentalization of Castells amidst Popular Expansion and National Debates . 234 6.1 Introduction . 234 6.1.1 Contextual background: the political and the cultural . 243 6.2 The civic and the political . 249 6.2.1 Castellers on the October 12 Día de la Hispanidad . 261 vi 6.3 Commercialization of castells and the negotiation of its role today . 266 6.4 Concluding remarks . 281 Chapter 7 Conclusions . 283 Appendix A . 292 Appendix B . 293 Bibliography . 299 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1: Structure of a human tower . 41 Figure 2.2: Vilatèxtil at-home languages . 62 Figure 2.3: Vilatèxtil at-castells languages . 64 Figure 2.4: Mediterrani at-home languages . 73 Figure 2.5: Mediterrani at-castells languages . 75 Figure 3.1: Castellera de Vilafranca . 81 Figure 3.2: Casteller values tattoo . 83 Figure 3.3: Promotional advertisement. Moixigangers d’Igualada . 98 Figure 3.4: Catalan peasant clothing . 99 Figure 3.5: Sardanes team clothing . 101 Figure 3.6: Shoulder shirt seams . 103 Figure 3.7: Rehearsal clothing . 104 Figure 3.8: Official casteller outfit . 105 Figure 3.9: Casteller participants putting on the sash . 110 Figure 3.10: Novice clothing . 112 Figure 3.11: Canalla or children’s bandana . 129 Figure 3.12: Vilatèxtil alcohol banner . 131 Figure 4.1: Omnium Cultural poster: 10 million voices . 137 Figure 4.2: Catalan language program poster (UCLA) . 138 Figure 5.1: Friendship Day posters . 194 Figure 5.2: 15M protests . 200 Figure 5.3: Enxaneta of Castellers de Barcelona . 201 Figure 5.4: Catalan flags on official shirts . 204 Figure 5.5: Airbnb sponsor . 205 Figure 5.6: Banking advertisement . 207 Figure 5.7: Mediterrani passport . 216 Figure 5.8: Exhibition poster from Mediterrani . 218 Figure 5.9: Vilatèxtil merchandising . 219 Figure 6.1: Banking ad:’sense risc, sense comissions’ . 237 Figure 6.2: Magazine cover El Jueves . 238 Figure 6.3: Poble Espanyol poster . 239 Figure 6.4: Omnium Cultural poster of international event . 250 Figure 6.5: Catalan National Day poster demonstration . 253 Figure 6.6: Casteller support to LGTBI community . 255 Figure 6.7: 12-O poster . 263 Figure 6.8: Casteller support for political prisoners . 273 Figure 7.1: Societat Civil Catalana poster . 288 viii Figure A.1: Valls 1921 (in Dalmau 1981, vol 1) . 292 Figure B.1: Vilatextil age chart1. ............................. 293 Figure B.2: Vilatèxtil classification by birth origin. 294 Figure B.3: Vilatèxtil distribution of language use at home. 294 Figure B.4: Vilatèxtil distribution of language use at castells. 295 Figure B.5: Mediterrani age chart. 295 Figure B.6: Mediterrani classification by birth origin. 296 Figure B.7: Mediterrani distribution of language use at home. 297 Figure B.8: Mediterrani distribution of language use at castells. 298 ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge and thank Professor Kathryn Woolard for all her enlightening discussions, meetings, and comments throughout the writing process of this dissertation. Her detailed reading and critical feedback of my drafts have helped me shape this final version. I owe to her my analytical skills and the enriching perspectives that I have acquired over the past eight years at UCSD. I also want to thank her for the encouragement and support during the very final stages of dissertation writing. I also wanted to acknowledge and thank professor Jeff Haydu for his careful reading of the various chapter drafts over the past years and his continued encouragement and support. Also, professor John Haviland, Pamela Radcliff, and Joan Pujolar for their inspiring seminars, constant support of my work, and crucial feedback. I.