A Cultural History of Day of the Dead

FAIN: FZ-300476-24

Mathew Sandoval
Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ 85281-3670)

Research and writing leading to a book on how the Day of the Dead (or Día de los Muertos) developed as a form of Mexican national culture in the early and mid-twentieth century. 

This monograph examines the invention of Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) as a form of Mexican national culture in the early and mid-twentieth century. I demonstrate that Day of the Dead’s identity as a national symbol was due to the cultural work performed by prominent transnational artists, intellectuals, and government officials. I concentrate my analysis on the visual and narrative representations these figures disseminated of Día de los Muertos in mass media, art exhibitions, tourism, and film. I argue that these images, narratives, and knowledges of Day of the Dead crafted the holiday as a symbol of Mexican cultural identity and paved the way for the holiday’s current global popularity.