ABSTRACT
The second chapter addresses the problem of constructing a model of Carnival on the basis of primary and secondary sources useful for the purpose of individuation, comparison, and generalisation. It explores the most important features and characteristics of Carnival, offering fresh evidence and up-to-date analyses about its transversal and long-lasting significance in and for European societies. Among the main topics explored in this chapter, there are: the “Carnivalesque”; masks and masking; feasting and binging, symbolic waste and unproductiveness; the carnival motifs of the trial, the scapegoat, and the ritual door-to-door processions.
