{"nodes":[{"node":{"nid":"80366","title":"American Trickster Book Launch and Conversation","campus":"Tempe campus","locations":"Rob and Melani Walton Center for Planetary Health (Walton Center)","college_unit":"Center for Imagination in the Borderlands, Department of English, The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences","department":"English - Center for Imagination in the Borderlands","field_cost_value":"Free","event_price_level":"Free","asu_events_price_desc":"Free","body_summary":"\u003Cp\u003ERu Marshall and Daniel Salda\u00f1a Paris will discuss Marshall\u2019s recently released\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003EAmerican T\u003C\/i\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","full_body":"\u003Cp\u003ERu Marshall and Daniel Salda\u00f1a Paris will discuss Marshall\u2019s recently released\u0026nbsp;\u003Ci\u003EAmerican Trickster: The Hidden Lives of Carlos Castaneda. American Trickster\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/i\u003Etells the story of the faux anthropologist from UCLA who, with his bestselling Don Juan books, pulled of the 20th\u0026nbsp;century\u2019s greatest literary hoax, passing off a series of novels as works of ethnography. Salda\u00f1a and Marshall will discuss the boundary between fiction and nonfiction, and the potential consequences when it is breached. They will also explore how Castaneda\u2019s books belong to the tradition of \u201cplaying Indian\u201d 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\u2019ll discuss as well Castaneda\u2019s role in the psychedelic movement of the sixties and seventies, and the potential relevance of his story to the contemporary psychedelic renaissance. When Castaneda\u2019s 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\u2019ll 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.\u003C\/p\u003E","phone":"","contactname":"Giovana Aviles","email":"giovana.aviles@asu.edu","delta":"0","alias":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/event\/american-trickster-book-launch-and-conversation?id=0","ticketing_rsvp_txt":"","ticketing_rsvp_txt2":"","ticketing_rsvp_url":"","ticketing_rsvp_url2":"","website":"","image_url":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/sites\/g\/files\/litvpz3506\/files\/2026-07\/Screenshot%202026-07-30%20at%202.54.00%E2%80%AFPM.png","image_alt":"","image_title":"","start_date":"Oct 28 2026 - 5:45pm","end_date":"Oct 28 2026 - 8:00pm","time_description":"5:45 pm Reception\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\n6:30 pm Reading\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\n8:00 pm Dessert reception","very_start_date":"2026-10-28T17:45:00Z","very_end_date":"2026-10-28T20:00:00Z","event_types":"Reading, Lecture","interests":"Academic and Professional Enhancement|English|Speaking engagement","audiences":"For alumni|For current ASU students|For staff|For future students","event_units":"Center for Imagination in the Borderlands|Department of English|The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences","event_topics":"Academic events|Open to the public","download":"","event_map_url":"","event_map_title":"","event_video":"","location_term":"Tempe campus","venue_address":"777 E University Dr","venue_city":"Tempe","venue_state":"AZ","venue_zip":"85281","alias-indexed":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/event\/american-trickster-book-launch-and-conversation?id=0","sport_tag":"","game_type":"","subtitle":"","season":"","athletic_conference":"","tv_network":"","radio_station":"","wear_color":"","game_theme":"","history":"","history_text":"","related_stories":"","related_stories_text":"","game_notes":"","game_notes_text":"","recap_link":"","recap_link_text":"","live_stats":"","live_stats_text":"","game_time_tba":"No","sda_all_day":"No","opponent_logo":"","related_videos":"","related_videos_text":"","recurring":"no"}}]}