In “Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain,” Jessica Mitford presents an intriguing, if unnerving, argument for the generality of death and the funeral business specifically in the United States. She explains that the role of the funeral director has evolved to the point that he (or she) “has put on a well-oiled performance in which the concept of death played no part whatsoever”. Embalming plays a principal role in this exhibit because it is the method through which the funeral industry can present the deceased in a manner that will make them appear as presentable or “not as dead as they should look” as is possible, given their limitations. Embalming and presenting the dead has spawned a vast supporting market into which, Mitford notes, Americans
This article is a narrative. It does not aim to analyse the topic. It describes the author's experiences at the mortuary and the resulting disturbing thoughts she had.
Each person has their own reason why the work in the funeral industry. Some people find it a “calling”. Others see it as a job only they can do. I do it because I enjoy helping people during a dark time and I don’t feel squeamish or sick when I handle remains. This is an occupation that is needed. People do not like to be reminded of their mortality, and when they experience death, it is shocking. We are here so that we can help them move past that shock and understand and accept their loss. We’re here to care for the deceased with the respect and dignity that everyone deserves in death.
In the past four decades the cost of a funeral service has risen 1,328% (Boring) and that’s not just because Morticians wanted to out of pure greed. One must take into account that modern mortuaries are much more of a business than before. Prior to 1970, the majority of funeral homes were were independent, family run. Today about 14% of funeral homes are run by a publicly traded corporation (Boring) meaning there’s a plethora of capital involved in these businesses now. The homes are built better and by professionals rather than by individuals with some tools, the home’s are extremely more sanitary since there’s more than likely no one living in these funeral homes unlike before, and the quality of the products these services are providing is greater than before.
The funeral was supposed to be a family affair. She had not wanted to invite so many people, most of them strangers to her, to be there at the moment she said goodbye. Yet, she was not the only person who had a right to his last moments above the earth, it seemed. Everyone, from the family who knew nothing of the anguish he had suffered in his last years, to the colleagues who saw him every day but hadn’t actually seen him, to the long-lost friends and passing acquaintances who were surprised to find that he was married, let alone dead, wanted to have a last chance to gaze upon him in his open coffin and say goodbye.
O'Brien, Tim. "The Lives of The Dead." O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin, 1990. 213-233. Print.
Written in 1938, Thorton Wilder’s Our Town brought a disturbing reality of life and death to its audience. Using minimal props, the play told the story of an average life in three, brief acts representing the three stages of life of daily life, marriage, and death. In the third and final act of this play, titled “Death and Dying,” Thorton Wilder peculiarly presented the deceased in the cemetery as portraying many aspects of the living, such as thinking and conversing with one another, but esteem themselves as being completely the opposite of the living. As the dead in Act III of Our Town feel to be on a totally different plane of existence apart from the living, the characteristics they portray show that they are very similar, if not identical, to those of their living counterparts.
Death occurs daily and is a normal part of life. People see death in a condescending perspective, as it signifies the end of one’s living, but fail to see how death presents an individual’s journey. It is a cycle that has ultimately come to an end. Yet, America rather desire to depict death as controllable factor as many headfast think of preparing for their looks when death comes closer. Many Americans have come to dsire to acquire the embalming process without fully comprehending what goes on behind the scene.In “Behind the Formaldehyde Curtains,” Mitford uses metaphor, imagery, and a logical appeal to enlighten the audience of the underlying reality of embalming as a irrational procedural custom America has deemed as the norm with ignorance
Introduction: Mary Roach introduces herself ass a person who has her own perspective of death about cadavers. She explains the benefits of cadavers and why they could be used for scientific improvements. She acknowledges the negative perspectives of this ideology.
In the essay “On the Fear of Death” Elisabeth Kubler-Ross focuses on dying and the effects it has on children as well as those who are dying, while in Jessica Mitford’s “Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain” focuses more on the after fact when the deceased is being prepared of their last appearance. Both authors, point out that the current attitude toward death is to simply cover it up. A successful funeral is when the deceased looks “Lyf Lyk” in Mitford’s Essay, but in Kubler-Ross’ it is dying at a peace with oneself, no IVs attached. Both authors feel that the current views of death is dehumanizing. Mitford points this out with the allusion that the funeral parlors are a theatrical play, while Kubler-Ross comments “I think there are many reasons
There are nearly one million species of insects known. Insects are defined by having six legs and a body divided into three segments: head, thorax, and abdomen. Chitin is an organic material that makes up an insects exoskeleton. There are three life cycles of insects, ametabolous or incomplete and paurometabolous or gradual, and homotabolous or complete metamorphosis. These life cycles are important in the aging of insects for aiding in legal investigations, (Houck and Siegel. Entomology).
...o keep our eyes from anything resembling death at a funeral of all places. Our society has shifted from family members cleaning dead bodies on their kitchen tables and having open caskets, to some stranger cleaning our dead relative and never seeing the body of the dead at the funeral. We now mourn in private and don’t want others to know the hurt of such a tragedy. This is a huge pendulum swing from the ancient Greeks who would pull out their hair and shave their heads as a sign of mourning. Luckily, sociologists are seeing the pendulum begin to swing back to public mourning.
3.) Divide your 30g of white substance into the 4 test tubes evenly. You should put 7.5g into each test tube along with the water.
While reviewing "The Funeral" the first thing that became apparent was the title. A funeral is ceremony held in connection with the burial of a dead person. So already just by looking at the title we become aware that we are dealing with a dead body. Death, in some cultures, is the separation of the body from the soul. The soul continues to live and may even find shelter in another body.
This instantly made me think of a funeral, as next to the body was a
Forensic entomology is the study of insects and arthropods and their relation to a criminal investigation. Forensic entomology can determine the postmortem interval (PMI) or how long since the descendants’ death, whether the body has been moved since expiring, and what injuries may have been sustained (Ryan, 2011). When decomposition begins, insects establish a colony to lay eggs on the remains; these eggs will hatch into larvae that will eat the human organs and tissues. Forensic entomologists can determine the specific insects present in the body and estimate how long a body has been left exposed by examining the stage of development of the fly larvae; however, these findings are not always plausible. The fly larvae look and act different at each stage of development. The time required for stage development is not only affected by environmental influences such as geographical location, climate, and weather conditions, but also by type of insect. The forensic entomologist must consider these conditions when estimating the postmortem interval. Knowledge of insects, their life cycles, and their habits make entomological evidence a priceless tool for an investigation. Forensic entomology has proved its significance in a number of cases; though circumstances such as weather, temperature, and time of year clearly affect the development of insect infestation, and the expert must keep these in the forefront of his/her mind (Innes, 2000).