Todd Van Beck's Reverence For The Dead

In “On Natural Death,” Thomas appeals to the readers by contemplating the subject of death with an academic approach that includes facts, data, and information. Thomas successfully transforms death from an awkward, emotional subject to a more comfortable intellectual one. This engages the readers by placing contemplation of death and dying within the confines of a more manageable and rational context. His gradual exhumation of death eases the audience into pondering the subject in the absence of emotional stress. The essay transitions from the death of an elm tree to that of a mouse. This is followed by Thomas giving a significant amount of attention to a scientific explanation of death, and then finally the description of the near death experience of a human. This use of an academic appeal moves the audience to a comfort zone with the subject of death and circumvents the common response of avoidance. The reader is simultaneously desensitized to the gravity of subject matter and given permission to consider death and dying without the normal societal negative stigma associated with the subject.

Painful as it may be, such experiences brings home the finality of death. Something deep within us demands a confrontation with death. A last look assures us that the person we loved is, indeed, gone forever.” (108) Cable finishes his essay by asking, Tim if his job ever depressed him. Tim in reply says, “No it doesn’t, and I do what I can for people and take satisfaction in enabling relatives to see their loved ones as they were in real life.” (108) After reading this essay I feel as though sometimes we don’t understand death so therefore we do not talk much about it. By reading about what goes on after your loved one dies and is sent to these places to be prepared and ready for burial, it helps to understand why morticians and funeral directors do what they do. Knowing that someone enjoys taking the responsibility in providing that comfort in a sorrowful time makes me appreciate these people in these occupations a bit

The tone of Mitford’s essay “Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain” reflects her disapproval of the embalming process. To illustrate, she uses harrowing words like “subjected” and “gruesomeness” to convey a message of disgust and unease within the readers. It is good she wrote her essay in a simple and satiric way, so that it is very easy for the common man to read and comprehend it, while the comedy and horrible detail leaves the terrible imagery of the embalming procedures in one’s mind long after reading. Texts like this one, and ones similar to it are very important as society evolves. It would seem that many people would read this and it would greatly influence whether they would want their family members embalmed or even what they would desire

A Life or Death Situation, by Robin Marantz Henig, New York Times, July, 2013, is a review of the debate surrounding the right to a dignified death. It examines the purely philosophical view of the issue; as well as the heart wrenching reality of being faced with that question in one 's personal life. Does a person have a right to choose how he or she dies? How does that choice impact the people who care about about him or her? Should a person who cares about someone be required to cause or aide in his or her death? These questions weigh heavy on the minds of many people, who live

No one can escape death. It’s one of so few unavoidable certainties in our lives and has held an important position in every human culture since time immemorial. Of course, this position has is different from culture to culture, and shifts over time. This is particularly evident in western culture. The shift is discussed at length in two essays: “Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain” by Jessica Mitford, and ‘The Fear of Dying’ by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. Both explore different aspects of these themes – Mitford’s essay being deconstruction of a the uniquely North American process of embalming, and Kübler-Ross’ being an indictment of the clinical depersonalization of contemporary western attitudes toward death. Each utilize many different tools as writers, such as rhetorical modes. Rhetorical modes they share are exemplification, description, and compare-and-contrast.

1. Watch “The Undertaking” where this video examines a family who works in the funeral industry as a window into American feelings on death and dying. Then, respond to the following questions: How do funeral rituals describe by the Lynch family show our cultural values about death and dying? How would a sociologist create a research question to systematically evaluate the claims that the Lynch family makes about death and dying? The funeral industry arguably exists to serve micro-level relationships, consoling individuals who have just lost others central to their social existence. How is the funeral industry connected to institutions at the community and

The author also frequently questions the legality of the embalming process. This is in reference to the established law practices in regards to the after-death procedures:

When Roach wrote about memorials held in medical schools for the student’s cadavers, she explained the room to be “silent and somber” (39, Roach). This exposed the care and respect the medical students put into their cadavers. Along with this Roach goes on and explains other feelings the medical students had about their cadavers. Roach spoke of feelings of “gratitude” and of having “grown attached to their cadavers.” (38, Roach) These as well expresses towards to the reader of the admiration the cadavers are held due to their

After one English woman participated in a funeral in San Francisco, she came across one such corpse that was embalmed, and as a result she stated: “Then and there I decided that I could never face another American funeral- even dead.”

The growth of the funeral industry was another factor in the American way of death. Rather than preparing and burying their own dead, families entrusted this job to professionals. The modern practice is several methods we use today being;

The purpose of this essay presented by Jessica Mitford is to inform people of procedures that are being done when embalming a corpse. She explains that most people pay a lot of money each year, and yet “not one in ten thousand has any idea of what actually takes place”, and the books related to this subject or any information are extremely hard to obtain. She adds, there must be a good reason why they keep these procedures secret and if people knew they would not want these procedures performed. Mitford states that traditional embalming in America took place at the home of the deceased, and most times a relative was present during such procedure. In present day this procedure is done by professionals and all others, but students, are not allowed by law in the preparation room.

One part of Hecht’s article that might be applicable to life is that he talks about how people once treated the event of someone who was on their deathbed, that in past centuries society it was sacred and revered. How deathbed scenes were commonplace in literature, theater, magazine essays and Sunday sermon. He compared it to how childbirth is treated to today. The article stated that a possible reason for the change of thought might have had to do with events such as World War I, World War II, and the holocaust.

The intent of this paper is to write about a class experience of the shadow of death, and reflect upon the readings, discussions and personal stories that have emotionally impressed me. Terms such as euthanasia, suicide and death rituals were discussed during the lectures in class leaving me with a sense of loss. The many beliefs and world vies, that may differ from the American culture, were considered, which I found to be enlightening. The examination of various concepts such as practicality, wisdom and humor were presented and illustrated in “Understanding dying, death, & bereavement” written by Leming and Dickinson (2011).

In 1965, Goffman defined stigmas as any attributes that sets people apart and discredits them or disqualifies them from full social acceptance. Funeral directors have so many stigmas put on them. The two stigmas are handling the dead and profiting from death and grief. There are many ways to manage stigmas. The two ways to manage the stigmas are symbolic redefinition and professionalism. In symbolic redefinition language is one of the most important symbols used by all humans. Morticians and funeral directors use this technique to help reduce the sigma’s that are associated with their job. By redefining themselves as a “grief therapists”, or as a “bereavement counselors”. The primary duties are making funeral arrangements, facilitate the services,

Mary Roach’s 2003 novel “Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers” dives into the mysterious world of a cadaver's life after death. Using a strong persuasive voice, Roach informs us about the options we have for our bodies after we die along with how to come to terms with death while we're still living.