People's University: Reading the Days of the Dead: Its Theory of Person and Society

Summary: Presented by Dr. Juanita Garciagodoy, Professor at Macalester College and author of Digging the Days of the Dead. In this illustrated lecture about interpreting Mexico's Days of the Dead, Dr. Garciagodoy will consider the practices and paraphernalia of the fiesta in order to tease out some of its philosophical implications. According to the celebrant, what is a human being and how does she fit into her community? What obligations do the living have towards the dead and vice versa? How does this festival both use and resist the homogeneity of a globalized world? At the end of the lecture audience members will be invited to build an ofrenda to our dead at the library -- bring a photo or name-card of your dead, plus a representation (or item) that was of significance to them, such as their favorite food, clothing, or pastime.