Discussion Questions

1. How are civic and religious holidays tied to national identity in the United States?
2. How does our society’s monochronic notion of time support the American Dream and some of our other cultural myths?
3. What are the differences between holidays, rituals, ceremonies, and celebrations?
4. What is the importance of celebrations to daily life?

Suggested Readings

• Jack Santino, All Around the Year: Holidays and Celebrations in American Life 
• Victor Turner, The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure
• Arnold van Gennep, The Rites of Passage 

Sample Assignments/Activities

• Consider the local celebrations associated with your campus and/or community.
• Have students examine the celebrations and rituals that make up the cyclical and linear mapping of their lives.
• Analyze a celebration in depth considering cultural myths, identity, material culture, and community.