Anthropology of Dying

Anthropology of Dying PDF Author: Mira Menzfeld
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3658198265
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
Mira Menzfeld explores dying persons’ experiences of their own dying processes. She reveals cultural specificities of pre-exital dying in contemporary Germany, paying special attention to how concepts of dying ‘(un)well’ are perceived and realized by dying persons. Her methodological focus centers on classical ethnographic approaches: Close participant observation as well as informal and semi-structured conversations. For a better understanding of the specificities of dying in contemporary Germany, the author provides a refined definition catalogue of adequate terms to describe dying from an anthropological perspective.

Anthropology of Dying

Anthropology of Dying PDF Author: Mira Menzfeld
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3658198265
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
Mira Menzfeld explores dying persons’ experiences of their own dying processes. She reveals cultural specificities of pre-exital dying in contemporary Germany, paying special attention to how concepts of dying ‘(un)well’ are perceived and realized by dying persons. Her methodological focus centers on classical ethnographic approaches: Close participant observation as well as informal and semi-structured conversations. For a better understanding of the specificities of dying in contemporary Germany, the author provides a refined definition catalogue of adequate terms to describe dying from an anthropological perspective.

A Companion to the Anthropology of Death

A Companion to the Anthropology of Death PDF Author: Antonius C. G. M. Robben
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 111922229X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 541

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Book Description
A thought-provoking examination of death, dying, and the afterlife Prominent scholars present their most recent work about mortuary rituals, grief and mourning, genocide, cyclical processes of life and death, biomedical developments, and the materiality of human corpses in this unique and illuminating book. Interrogating our most common practices surrounding death, the authors ask such questions as: How does the state wrest away control over the dead from bereaved relatives? Why do many mourners refuse to cut their emotional ties to the dead and nurture lasting bonds? Is death a final condition or can human remains acquire agency? The book is a refreshing reassessment of these issues and practices, a source of theoretical inspiration in the study of death. With contributions written by an international team of experts in their fields, A Companion to the Anthropology of Death is presented in six parts and covers such subjects as: Governing the Dead in Guatemala; After Death Communications (ADCs) in North America; Cryonic Suspension in the Secular Age; Blood and Organ Donation in China; The Fragility of Biomedicine; and more. A Companion to the Anthropology of Death is a comprehensive and accessible volume and an ideal resource for senior undergraduate and graduate students in courses such as Anthropology of Death, Medical Anthropology, Anthropology of Violence, Anthropology of the Body, and Political Anthropology. Written by leading international scholars in their fields A comprehensive survey of the most recent empirical research in the anthropology of death A fundamental critique of the early 20th century founding fathers of the anthropology of death Cross-cultural texts from tribal and industrial societies The collection is of interest to anyone concerned with the consequences of the state and massive violence on life and death

Celebrations of Death

Celebrations of Death PDF Author: Peter Metcalf
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521423755
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 10

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Book Description
Machine derived contents note: List of illustrations -- Preface -- Introduction to the second edition -- 1. Preliminaries -- Part I. Universals and Culture: 2. Emotional reactions to death -- 3. Symbolic associations of death -- Part II. Death as Transition: 4. The living and the dead: a re-examination of Hertz -- 5. Death rituals and life values: rites of passage reconsidered -- Part III. The Royal Corpse and the Body Politic: 6. The dead king -- 7. The immortal kingship -- Part IV. Seeing Ourselves Anew: 8. American deathways -- Bibliography -- Index.

Beyond the Good Death

Beyond the Good Death PDF Author: James W. Green
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN: 0812202074
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
In November 1998, millions of television viewers watched as Thomas Youk died. Suffering from the late stages of Lou Gehrig's disease, Youk had called upon infamous Michigan pathologist Dr. Jack Kevorkian to help end his life on his own terms. After delivering the videotape to 60 Minutes, Kevorkian was arrested and convicted of manslaughter, despite the fact that Youk's family firmly believed that the ending of his life qualified as a good death. Death is political, as the controversies surrounding Jack Kevorkian and, more recently, Terri Schiavo have shown. While death is a natural event, modern end-of-life experiences are shaped by new medical, demographic, and cultural trends. People who are dying are kept alive, sometimes against their will or the will of their family, with powerful medications, machines, and "heroic measures." Current research on end-of-life issues is substantial, involving many fields. Beyond the Good Death takes an anthropological approach, examining the changes in our concept of death over the last several decades. As author James W. Green determines, the attitudes of today's baby boomers differ greatly from those of their parents and grandparents, who spoke politely and in hushed voices of those who had "passed away." Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, in the 1960s, gave the public a new language for speaking openly about death with her "five steps of dying." If we talked more about death, she emphasized, it would become less fearful for everyone. The term "good death" reentered the public consciousness as narratives of AIDS, cancer, and other chronic diseases were featured on talk shows and in popular books such as the best-selling Tuesdays with Morrie. Green looks at a number of contemporary secular American death practices that are still informed by an ancient religious ethos. Most important, Beyond the Good Death provides an interpretation of the ways in which Americans react when death is at hand for themselves or for those they care about.

Beyond the Veil

Beyond the Veil PDF Author: Aubrey Thamann
Publisher: Berghahn Books
ISBN: 1805394355
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 373

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Book Description
Looking at the cultural responses to death and dying, this collection explores the emotional aspects that death provokes in humans, whether it is disgust, fear, awe, sadness, anger, or even joy. Whereas most studies of death and dying treat the subject from an objective viewpoint, the scholars in this collection recognize their inherent connection with death which allows for a new and more personal form of study. More broadly, this collection suggests a new paradigm in the study of death and dying.

Death, Mourning, and Burial

Death, Mourning, and Burial PDF Author: Antonius C. G. M. Robben
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1405137509
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
In Death, Mourning, and Burial, an indispensable introduction to the anthropology of death, readers will find a rich selection of some of the finest ethnographic work on this fascinating topic. Comprised of six sections that mirror the social trajectory of death: conceptualizations of death; death and dying; uncommon death; grief and mourning; mortuary rituals; and remembrance and regeneration Includes canonical readings as well as recent studies on topics such as organ donation and cannibalism Designed for anyone concerned with issues of death and dying, as well as: violence, terrorism, war, state terror, organ theft, and mortuary rituals Serves as a text for anthropology classes, as well as providing a genuinely cross-cultural perspective to all those studying death and dying

Leisure and Death

Leisure and Death PDF Author: Adam Kaul
Publisher: University Press of Colorado
ISBN: 9781607327882
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This anthropological study examines the relationship between leisure and death, specifically how leisure practices are used to meditate upon—and mediate—life. Considering travelers who seek enjoyment but encounter death and dying, tourists who accidentally face their own mortality while vacationing, those who intentionally seek out pleasure activities that pertain to mortality and risk, and those who use everyday leisure practices like social media or dogwalking to cope with death, Leisure and Death delves into one of the most provocative subsets of contemporary cultural anthropology. These nuanced and well-developed ethnographic case studies deal with different and distinct examples of the intertwining of leisure and death. They challenge established conceptions of leisure and rethink the associations attached to the prospect of death. Chapters testify to encounters with death on a personal and scholarly level, exploring, for example, the Cliffs of Moher as not only one of the most popular tourist destinations in Ireland but one of the most well-known suicide destinations as well, and the estimated 30 million active posthumous Facebook profiles being repurposed through proxy users and transformed by continued engagement with the living. From the respectful to the fascinated, from the macabre to the morbid, contributors consider how people deliberately, or unexpectedly, negotiate the borderlands of the living. An engaging, timely book that explores how spaces of death can be transformed into spaces of leisure, Leisure and Death makes a significant contribution to the burgeoning interdisciplinary literature on leisure studies and dark tourism. This book will appeal to students, scholars, and laypeople interested in tourism studies, death studies, cultural studies, heritage studies, anthropology, sociology, and marketing. Contributors: Kathleen M. Adams, Michael Arnold, Jane Desmond, Keith Egan, Maribeth Erb, James Fernandez, Martin Gibbs, Rachel Horner-Brackett, Shingo Iitaka, Tamara Kohn, Patrick Laviolette, Ruth McManus, James Meese, Bjorn Nansen, Stravoula Pipyrou, Hannah Rumble, Cyril Schafer

The Anthropology of Extinction

The Anthropology of Extinction PDF Author: Genese Marie Sodikoff
Publisher: Indiana University Press
ISBN: 0253223644
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
The Anthropology of Extinction offers compelling explorations of issues of widespread concern.

Living and Dying in the Contemporary World

Living and Dying in the Contemporary World PDF Author: Veena Das
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520278410
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 890

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Book Description
Taking a novel approach to the contradictory impulses of violence and care, illness and healing, this book radically shifts the way we think of the interrelations of institutions and experiences in a globalizing world. Living and Dying in the Contemporary World is not just another reader in medical anthropology but a true tour de forceÑa deep exploration of all that makes life unbearable and yet livable through the labor of ordinary people. This book comprises forty-four chapters by scholars whose ethnographic and historical work is conducted around the globe, including South Asia, East Asia, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the United States. Bringing together the work of established scholars with the vibrant voices of younger scholars, Living and Dying in the Contemporary World will appeal to anthropologists, sociologists, health scientists, scholars of religion, and all who are curious about how to relate to the rapidly changing institutions and experiences in an ever more connected world. Ê

The Land of Open Graves

The Land of Open Graves PDF Author: Jason De Leon
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520958683
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 384

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Book Description
In his gripping and provocative debut, anthropologist Jason De León sheds light on one of the most pressing political issues of our time—the human consequences of US immigration policy. The Land of Open Graves reveals the suffering and deaths that occur daily in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona as thousands of undocumented migrants attempt to cross the border from Mexico into the United States. Drawing on the four major fields of anthropology, De León uses an innovative combination of ethnography, archaeology, linguistics, and forensic science to produce a scathing critique of “Prevention through Deterrence,” the federal border enforcement policy that encourages migrants to cross in areas characterized by extreme environmental conditions and high risk of death. For two decades, this policy has failed to deter border crossers while successfully turning the rugged terrain of southern Arizona into a killing field. In harrowing detail, De León chronicles the journeys of people who have made dozens of attempts to cross the border and uncovers the stories of the objects and bodies left behind in the desert. The Land of Open Graves will spark debate and controversy.