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Death and dying cultural reactions
How different cultures react to death
Culture influences how people view death, and end of life decisions essay
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Introduction
Death arouses social and economic concerns in the society as grieving families struggle to give the deceased an appropriate farewell. The emotional attachment and traditions oblige relatives and friends of the decedent to organize a funeral service to honor his or her life. A funeral ceremony refers to a social function planned to respect and offer a decent sendoff to the dead. The community has the responsibility to uphold moral and social integrity to both living and departed souls (Bryant, 2003). Therefore, a funeral service is the crucial social practice that unites the society and appreciates the life in general. Notably, the process of organizing a funeral is costly and involves the use of many resources. Some of the costs include buying or renting a casket, creating decorations, paying funeral home charges, hiring a hearse, and many others. Essentially, funeral homes and some community-based organizations assist in ensuring that the deceased is laid to rest according to the wishes of the relatives, friends, and community. An
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In essence, purchasing a casket is an unavoidable expense and a challenge to many US citizens. Therefore, renting services act as an alternative to the costly practice of buying a coffin. Notably, the renting cost is lower than buying; consequently, it is a preference for many families (Miller, 2016). The renting charges are nearly $500, depending on the material and design of a coffin. The decision to use either of the alternatives lies in the constraints of family members and legal provisions. Markedly, funerals should be both a burden to the grieving family and a collective societal responsibility since death is universal. Thus, members of the community must work together in helping the families of deceased people to organize and execute funeral services, and renting can be an objective
Since each funeral home is for the majority independent, the “leader” is either the owner or the manager. The position is achieved th...
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.
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.
“In most human society's death is an extremely important cultural and social phenomenon, sometimes more important than birth” (Ohnuki-Tierney, Angrosino, & Daar et al. 1994). In the United States of America, when a body dies it is cherished, mourned over, and given respect by the ones that knew the person. It is sent to the morgue and from there the family decides how the body should be buried or cremated based on...
African-American is a politically correct term used to refer to blacks within the United States. The roots of many African-American rites can be traced back to African cultural rites. However, it is important to note that not all blacks in America identify with African cultural roots. Therefore, some of the rites found within what many in the United States call African-American culture stem from Caribbean and other cultural traditions. For this reason, when making end of life decisions or funeral arrangements the “cultural identification, spirituality and the social class” the individual identifies with must be taken into account. The black majority within the United States identifies with Afrocentric traditions and perspectives. For this reason the term African-American will be used within this paper to denote the black population found in America as comparisons are made regarding how end of life decisions are viewed and made by African-American culture verses the traditional western European beliefs of American culture (Barrett, 2002).
In Sandy Hingston’s “The death of the funeral business”, the story motivates people into moving into different sets of values or beliefs that weren’t acquainted in their previous ideas. I feel the understanding of change in culture is motivating the author. The time that she is living a time and era in which we as the people search for many ways to have freedom. This includes freedom of choice from the restraints of our own minds such as culture and beliefs we are so accustomed to. Hingston is seeing as a change on how we perceive our body because of the time and era it occurs in. One of the the biggest change in history is the since 1884 which introduced the use cremation. This later rose in popularity overtime in which it finally reached
While they have been recently popping up throughout the Western world, they do demonstrate cultural norms through the materials left behind at the memorial site; often times, they replicate structures similar to ones at old gravesites, RIP, messages on tombstones and recitals like those at traditional funerals. In this sense traditional represents a memorial and funeral in a religious setting. These new memorials often times do not find meaning in religious settings after a sudden and tragic death has occurred. Proxemics in this case is displayed by the surviving families feeling that their loved ones death spot belongs to them; identity is constructed through the items left behind. To the ones left behind, they do not want the death to go unnoticed and want to connect to the last place a loved one was alive. They feel empowered to do so through the tragic event that has occurred there. After such tragedy has happened, a common public place spaces become a private place of tribute. Whether is it through pictures, personal messages or a cross, the items left behind reflect how the deceased influenced his or her surviving friends and family. The difference becomes more evident when it done through a civil body ...
Deaths were a form of social event, when families and loved ones would gather around the bed of the dying, offering emotional support and comfort. Myth, religion, and tradition would combine to give the event deeper meaning and ease the transition for all involved. The one who was dying was confident in knowing what lay behind the veil of death, thanks to religious faith or tradition. His or her community held fast to the sense of community, drawing strength from social ties and beliefs. (“Taboos and Social Stigma - Rituals, Body, Life, History, Time, Person, Human, Traditional Views of Death Give Way to New Perceptions" 1)
During a time of distress and duress, many family members make decisions which are often hasty. The funeral industry takes advantage of those who are grieving by telling family members that embalming is necessary. The undertaker uses the argument that the corpse needs to be preserved in order for it to be presentable. The funeral director often decides to embalm the corpse without permission from the person who passed away or any of his family members (Mitford, 2005). After everything has finished, the total bill for the funeral service is often more then what was told initially and the family is left with an enormous bill. People want to have the body to be presentable at the funeral; therefore, they are coerced into paying extra to promote the growth of the undertaking industry (Mitford, 1998).
In modern day America, we unknowingly take countless things for granted on a daily basis. For example, we blatantly assume that privileges such as clean hospital rooms, trash services, and preservation have always been provided. In reality, at the time of the civil war, medical and hygienic methods were primitive compared to today’s technology in medicine. A significant difference was the process after death. Modern day embalming was created, as an innovative way to preserve the bodies of fallen soldiers, but has developed into a customary practice that accompanies contemporary mortality.
Funeral expenses vary depending upon the type of service you are interested in. If you would like a traditional burial that includes a full church service, coffin and burial in a cemetery you can expect the price to be around 7000 pounds. Of course, if you wish to have several pall bearers,
When death occurs, the body is prepared for viewing. People of the same gender prepare the body by laying their “hands across the chest, closing the eyelids, anointing the body with oil, and placing flower garlands around it.” (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, pg. 384). According to Leming and Dickinson, Hindus believe that cremation is “an act of sacrifice” because they are offering their body to God. The body is usually cremated on the bank of a sacred river. The book, Understanding dying, death, and bereavement offers an “invocation” that would be close to what a priest would recite, “Fire, you were lighted by him, so may he be lighted from you, that he may gain the regions of celestial bliss. May this offering prove auspicious.” Leming and Dickinson (2011) state that between 10-31 days post cremation, a feast (shraddha) is shared among mourners and priests. Shraddhas can last hours to days, depending on the wealth of the family. Once this shraddha is over, the mourning period comes to a close. It is said that the funeral is the second most important ritual, following a wedding, and that many families spend all the money they have on them, leading to impoverishment (Leming & Dickinson, 2011, p.
Most people dismiss anything having to do with death out of fear. The uncertainty some associate with death has caused Funeral Service to be a particularly taboo subject in society. One may assume funeral directors are the sketchy personalities enthralled with death, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Over the years, Funeral Service has progressed and become a larger industry. Funeral Service has changed in its history over time, affecting the education required, and the job they do today.
It can also be quite stressful for the dying individual if the family members are attempting to plan their funeral and they are unable to communicate their wishes (Callanan & Kelley, 1992: 42-43). This issue of miscommunication occurs closer to death, so if the planning process starts soon enough the dying individual should be able to effectively communicate their wishes (Callanan & Kelley, 1992: 42-43). It has also impacted the dying individual in positive ways. Because of this, there are now places that individuals can transition into before the actual dying process begins. For example, in past decades, individuals with dementia would have to stay at home and be cared for by their friends and family, who while trying their best, may not have been able to cope with the demands of that individual along with their own personal lives (Dosa, 2010). Now, these individuals, when money and resources allow, are able to access special institutions and sectors in hospitals that are specially equipped to deal with those demands (Dosa, 2010). But this transition has plenty of financial challenges that go along with
A funeral is an important event that should be planned with careful consideration, as each person only gets one to celebrate his or her life. People often die expectantly and suddenly leaving any funeral and burial arrangements in the hands of friends or relatives. These friends or family of the deceased may or may not have a good understanding of what the deceased would have preferred in his or her post death arrangements. A person planning his or her own funeral can prevent this guessing game and insure the arrangements are to their specifications.