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Event
The Work of the Dead: A Cultural History of Mortal Remains: An Illustrated lecture with historian Thomas W. Laqueur, University of California at Berkeley
Date: Wednesday, May 4th
Time: 7 pm
Admission: $5
Books will be available for sale and signing
The Greek philosopher Diogenes said that when he died his body should be tossed over the city walls for beasts to scavenge. Why should he or anyone else care what became of his corpse? In "The Work of the Dead," acclaimed cultural historian Thomas Laqueur examines why humanity has universally rejected Diogenes's argument. No culture has been indifferent to mortal remains. Even in our supposedly disenchanted scientific age, the dead body still mattersfor individuals, communities, and nations. A remarkably ambitious history, The Work of the Dead offers a compelling and richly detailed account of how and why the living have cared for the dead, from antiquity to the twentieth century.
In tonight's illustrated lecture, join Dr. Laqueur ior an illustrated talk, tracing the body from churchyard to cemetery to crematory, providing a fascinating chronicle of how we shape the dead and are in turn shaped by them.
Thomas W. Laqueur is the Helen Fawcett Professor of History at the University of California, Berkeley. His books include Making Sex: Body and Gender from the Greeks to Freud and Solitary Sex: A Cultural History of Masturbation. He is a regular contributor to the London Review of Books.
Image: Mummies in the Palermo Catacombs
Please note; No refunds will be given unless event is cancelled
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LocationMorbid Anatomy Museum (View)
424 A Third Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11215
United States
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