American Trickster Book Launch and Conversation

Ru Marshall and Daniel Saldaña París will discuss Marshall’s recently released American Trickster: The Hidden Lives of Carlos Castaneda. American Trickster tells the story of the faux anthropologist from UCLA who, with his bestselling Don Juan books, pulled of the 20th century’s greatest literary hoax, passing off a series of novels as works of ethnography. Saldaña and Marshall will discuss the boundary between fiction and nonfiction, and the potential consequences when it is breached. They will also explore how Castaneda’s books belong to the tradition of “playing Indian” in both New Age culture and anthropology (Castaneda claimed that his works were based on his apprenticeship with a Yaqui/Yoeme shaman, while in fact they were largely based on German phenomenology). They’ll discuss as well Castaneda’s role in the psychedelic movement of the sixties and seventies, and the potential relevance of his story to the contemporary psychedelic renaissance. When Castaneda’s reputation in academia began to fade, he had a second act as a cult leader, which culminated in the group suicide of five of his followers. Marshall and Paris will explore the mechanisms of cultic manipulation, and how they operate in small groups, in the academic context, and in the wider social sphere. They’ll discuss as well their own personal experiences with Castaneda related cultic groups, the craft of biography, and what we can learn from the Castaneda tale.

This event includes a reception before and dessert reception after the event.