The Death Rituals of Rural Greece

This compelling text and dramatic photographic essay convey the emotional power of the death rituals of a small Greek village - the funeral, the singing of laments, the distribution of food, the daily visits to the graves, and especially the rite of exhumation. These rituals help Greek villagers face the universal paradox of mourning: how can the living sustain relationships with the dead and at the same time bring them to an end, in order to continue to live meaningfully as members of a community?That is the villagers' dilemma, and our own. Thirty-one moving photographs (reproduced in duotone to do justice to their great beauty) combine with vivid descriptions of the bereaved women of "Potamia" and with the words of the funeral laments to allow the reader an unusual emotional identification with the people of rural Greece as they struggle to integrate the experience of death into their daily lives. Loring M. Danforth's sensitive use of symbolic and structural analysis complements his discussion of the social context in which these rituals occur. He explores important themes in rural Greek life, such as the position of women, patterns of reciprocity and obligation, and the nature of social relations within the family.

ISBN 0691000271   DEWEY edition DC19 ISBN13 9780691000275 (What's this?)   Pages 234 Publisher Princeton University Press   Volumes 1 Imprint Princeton University Press   Weight (grammes) 565 Format Paperback   Published in New Jersey Publication date 01 Dec 1982   Height (mm) 197 Illustrator Tsiaras, Alexander   Width (mm) 241 Photographer Tsiaras, Alexander   Spine width (mm) 18 Library of Congress GT3251.A2D   Academic level Professional / Scholarly, Tertiary education DEWEY 393.09495

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