The Wedding of the Dead: Ritual, Poetics, and Popular Culture in Transylvania (Studies on the History of Society and Culture) [signed]

Though the Communist regime has transformed the rhythms of village life in the Socialist republic of Romania, the state has tolerated its traditional rituals. This work, based on 17 months of fieldwork in the village of Maramures, analyzes weddings and funerals through the oral poetry accompanying these rites of passage. Included in the work are a detailed sociological portrait of Maramures and dozens of poems, toasts, laments, and songs (in the original language with English translation) pointing to the personal as well as the sociocentric concerns of this peasant community. Winnie Lambrecht, Brown Univ., ProvidenceCopyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.