3 A Multi-Epistemological Framework

No single theory can encapsulate the diversity and entanglement of the narratives presented in this project, and so its overall conceptual framework draws on the various strategies of my research process. These include returning to the field with my recordings of court songs, sharing them with a selection of new research collaborators, soliciting their interpretations with a focus on power relations, and representing these interpretations to the reader. Accordingly, the framework considers how these commentators cast court songs in a new light. That is, how they apply the historical purposes of the songs’ lyrics to current contexts, which then assign them new meanings in the national political sphere. In these contexts, Interpreting Court Song in Uganda treats Kiganda court songs not only in terms of the ethnic group with which they are primarily associated, the Baganda, but also in terms of the broader national Ugandan polity. As suggested in previous chapters, it is within this polity that the songs assume a myriad of meanings. In addition, this study’s conceptual framework engages with ideas from my research community and within multiple canons, advancing, challenging, and building on the work of scholars across different fields. A broader multi-epistemological framework captures the complexity of the varied songs, stories, analyses, and lyrical interpretations and meanings that appear in this book. I study these texts not as individual narratives but as parts of a collective discourse that extends beyond the boundaries of a single coherent narrative.