MAPACA

Mid-Atlantic Popular &
American Culture Association

Many objects recently left on grave sites bring to them light and movement: pinwheels, flags, wind chimes and countless other types of material culture animate resting places of the deceased. My research focuses on solar-powered lights in Virginia (Rockbridge, Augusta, and Rockingham Counties) and North Carolina (Moore, Lee, Watauga, Wake, Rutherford, Orange, Guilford, and New Hanover Counties) cemeteries, and on the hypothesis that their use relates to asserting a continued vitality that transcends physical death. As one Baptist minister in Virginia explained, for the bereaved putting a light on a grave site is “thought of, not consciously, but in their minds they’re saying as long as I keep this light burning, there is still some kind of life still here. If I can capture this light, there must be some kind of energy there.” The use of solar-powered illumination appears in secular as well as religious cemeteries, and therefore seems amenable to varied specific understandings of the soul and afterlife. To better understand the meanings and import of these objects, I am conducting a survey and quantitative analysis cemeteries to see whether their use corresponds in any regular way with age of the decedent, denomination, conditions of deceased, or other factors. I am also interviewing bereaved family members or friends, religious leaders, and cemetery staff to better understand the etic perspective of this modern material culture practice. Furthermore, I have collaborated in creating a time-lapse video of solar-powered lights coming to life on grave sites as the sun set – and visitors came and left – in municipal Green Hill Cemetery (Buena Vista, Virginia). This documentation suggests that the lights are often understood as both gifts to the deceased and comfort for the living.