Saturday, November 1, 2008

Day of the Dead

November 1-2





Excerpt from: Sugar, Colonialism, and Death: On the Origins of Mexico's Day of the Dead, by Stanley Brandes, University of California-Berkeley, on Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol. 39, No. 2 (Apr., 1997), pp. 270-299, Cambridge University Press.

Mexico´s most famous holiday is, without doubt, the Day of the Dead. At the end of October, large numbers of foreign visitors descend upon Mexico to witness colorful - some would say carnivalesque- ritual performances and artistic displays. Decorated breads, paper cutouts, and plastic toys, most of them humorously playing on the theme of death, are evident everywhere. Sculpted sugar candies in the form of skulls, skeletons, and caskets suggest an almost irreverent, macabre confrontation with mortality. During November 1 and Novemeber 2, Mexicans clean, decorate, and maintain vigil over the graves of relatives. Tombstones and burial sites are adorned with flowers, candles, and food, all aesthetically arranged in honor of the deceased. Some Mexicans claim that the souls of the departed watch over living relatives during these few days. Negligent family members await punishment, whether on earth or in the afterlife. This belief is invoked throughout Mexico to explain the substantial time, money, and energy invested in the two-day ceremony.
At the outset, it should be made clear that the Day of the Dead is, at least in the contemporary era, an essentially Mexican term referring to the Mexican version of a pan-Roman Catholic holiday. Strictly speaking, the Day of the Dead -in Spanish, el Día de los Muertos (Soul´s Day) or el Día de los Fieles Difuntos (the Day of the Faithful Deceased)- refers to All Soul´s Day, which usually falls on November 2.(...). However, it usually also refers to activities that occur the day before, that is, on November 1, All Saint´s Day- el Día de todos los Santos. In fact, in colloquial speech the Day of the Dead most often means the entire period encompassing the evening of October 31 through the morning of November 2, the days when the greatest range of ritual involvement, artistic exuberance, and commercial activity are in evidence. In terms of time, money, and energy expended, it is no exaggeration to say that Day of the Dead rivals other great annual ceremonial occasions in Mexico, particularly Holy Week and the Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe on December 12. Further, even though All Saints' and Souls' Days are pan-Roman Catholic holidays, nowhere in the Catholic world have they reached such lavish proportions as in Mexico.


Artworks byJosé Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913).