December & January Theme: Holidays & Celebrations
As the holiday season approaches, Provisions Library invites you to explore the vibrant world of holidays, festivals, and celebrations in this month’s Books in the Window display.
Holidays and celebrations extend far beyond surface-level joy and festivity. They reveal rich layers of cultural, economic, and political significance. Through what we celebrate, how we celebrate, and with whom we celebrate, these moments illuminate the values, traditions, and complexities of our shared human experience.
Celebrations as Traditions
Celebrations are deeply rooted in religious, spiritual, ethnic, and cultural practices. They carry the weight of history, offering a connection to the past while evolving with the present.
Celebrations as Identity and Community
Festivals are opportunities to build social bonds, form collective identities, and foster a sense of belonging within communities. They reflect who we are and who we aspire to be.
Celebrations as Political Acts
Festivals and holidays can serve as platforms for resistance and activism. They create cultural spaces for agency and counter-narratives, challenging dominant cultures and amplifying diverse voices.
Celebrations as Transformations
Migration and globalization reshape the way we celebrate, blending traditions to create dynamic cultural fusions that reflect our interconnected world.
Celebrations as Economic Drivers
Festivals not only bring people together but also boost local and national economies through tourism, placemaking, and cultural branding.
At the same time, celebrations are not without challenges. Issues of representation, authenticity, and commercialization raise questions about the ethics and sustainability of modern celebrations.
Join us this winter as we delve into how festivals and celebrations both reflect and shape cultural, economic, and political realities. Let’s uncover the deeper meanings behind the holidays and their impact on our lives.
Keywords: #Holidays #Celebrations #Festivals #Traditions #CulturalPractices #ReligiousPractices #Spirituality #Community #SocialBonds #CollectiveIdentity #Activism #Resistance #Counterculture #Migration #Globalization #CulturalFusion #Tourism #Placemaking #EconomicImpact #Placemaking #Representation #Authenticity #Commercialization #CulturalAgency #SocialChange
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Book List
- Creative Ethnicity: Symbols and Strategies of Contemporary Ethnic Life John Allan Cicala & Stephen Stern, 1991
- We Are What We Celebrate: Understanding Holidays and Rituals Jared Bloom & Amitai Etzioni, 2004
- Celebrating the Family: Ethnicity, Consumer Culture, and Family Rituals Elizabeth H. Pleck, 2000
- Woodstock: Peace, Music & Memories, 40th Anniversary Brad Littleproud & Joanne Hague, 2009
- Music/City: American Festivals and Placemaking in Austin, Nashville, and Newport Jonathan R. Wynn, 2015
- Japanese American Celebration and Conflict: A History of Ethnic Identity and Festival, 1934-1990 Lon Kurashige, 2002
- Public Performances: Studies in the Carnivalesque and Ritualesque Jack Santino, 2017
- The Celebration of Death in Contemporary Culture Dina Khapaeva, 2017
- The Public Work of Christmas: Difference & Belonging in Multicultural Societies Pamela E. Klassen & Monique Scheer, 2019
- This Land Is Their Land: The Wampanoag Indians, Plymouth Colony, and the Troubled History of Thanksgiving David J. Silverman, 2019
Curated by Soojung Paek