The Denison University Goodspeed Lecture Series welcomes author David Edwards to present "Antigone in Cabul." Edwards will speak at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday (March 22) in Higley Auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Edwards is the Carl W. Vogt Professor of Anthropology at Williams College (Mass.), where he is primarily interested in political anthropology, historical anthropology, violence and culture, and the Near East and South Asia. He spent five years living in Afghanistan and working with Afghan refugees in Pakistan. His latest book, "Before Taliban: Genealogies of the Afghan Jihad," was published by the University of California Press in 2002. In it, Edwards traces the lives of three recent Afghan leaders -- Nur Muhammed Taraki, Samiullah Safi, and Qazi Amin Waqad. "The three leaders were chosen not only because of the positions of authority and prestige they have occupied," Edwards said, "but also because of the various ways in which they exemplify the dislocations and uncertainties of Afghan society over the last 40 years." The book explains how the promise of progress and prosperity that animated Afghanistan in the 1960s crumbled and became a tragedy of discord, destruction, and despair.

Edwards was named a Scholar of Vision for 2002-2003 and was awarded a major fellowship by the Carnegie Corporation in New York. He has been featured in many publications and programs ranging from the New York Times to National Public Radio (NPR) and the BBC World Service. Before joining the faculty at Williams, Edwards taught anthropology at Washington University and the University of Michigan. He earned his bachelor's degree from Princeton University and his doctoral degree from the University of Michigan.

Edwards is the author of two books about Afghanistan, includingHeroes of the Age: Moral Fault Lines on the Afghan Frontierand many other articles on Afghanistan and South Asia.

Calendar Listing:

CALENDAR LISTING: Denison University, Granville -- The Goodspeed Lecture Series presents David Edwards, author, at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday (March 22), Higley Auditorium. Free and open to the public. Contact (740) 587-6328 to confirm information.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

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