Lee High School
Views on Death
Adrianna Mendez
Brian Cahoon
Senior Capstone
April 6, 2020
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Brian Cahoon
Senior capstone
April 6, 2020
Views on Death
Usually, death is seen as a serious event that happens in everyone’s life, but it does not
have to be viewed that way. People are starting to perceive funerals as a celebration of life
instead of mourning the loss of their loved ones. Morticians play a big part in the funeral industry
because they are the ones that make sure the body is the way the family wants it, whether it be
cremation or embalmed in a casket. Morticians can go through a lot, "Not only are you dealing
with the dead bodies; you're dealing with the incredible sorrow of the families. They're angry
that somebody has died and they're looking for somebody to take it out on." (Doughty p. 5)
When people think of death it is automatically sad and depressing but some morticians are trying
to change that. Morticians change views on death by supporting and sharing the “Death
Positive Movement”, educating people on the subject, and showing people different ways
cultures celebrate life.
The death positive movement is “a social and philosophical movement that encourages
people to speak openly about death, dying and corpses. It also encourages people to express their
feelings about death through art” (Doughty p. 1) This movement is important because it helps
people alleviate fear and anxiety, understand the process of dying, and put an end to the silence
when it comes to death. The outcome that can emerge from this movement is that people will no
longer have the fear that they carry with them about death. They will have the ability to talk
about death freely and ask the questions they want to know but were too afraid to ask. The Death
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Positive Movement is something that morticians can use to help people understand death more
and hopefully change their perspective on it.
Educating people on death can be a sensitive topic for some but it is important because it
can happen to anyone. When there is no education or knowledge of a subject there is angst and
the feeling of being worried. There are many resources that help with the education process, for
example, Caitlin Doughty is a mortician and she is very involved with the idea of educating
people about death. Doughty has a youtube channel where she answers questions people have
about death and the process a mortician goes through while handling a body. Hopefully, when
people learn more about death they can find it a little less daunting. It is important that people are
educated on death because it is inevitable and it is better to be prepared. “Death is the engine that
keeps us running, giving us the motivation to achieve, learn, love, and create.” (Doughty p. 31)
Rather than death being frightening people can use it as motivation to accomplish all the things
they want in life.
Cultures around the world celebrate life in many different ways depending on their
funeral traditions. The sky burial is a very unique funeral tradition that they do in Mongolia and
Tibet. Vajrayana Buddhists that live there believe in the transmigration of spirits after death, in
other words, they believe that the soul moves on and the body becomes empty. To give the body
back to the eath they chop it u into pieces and place it on the top of the mountain where it is
exposed to vultures. Another funeral tradition they do in Madagascar is called “the turning of the
bones”. The Malagasy people of Madagascar have a celebration every five or seven years were
they go to their ancestral crypt. When they arrive, the Malagasy unbury the bodies of their
ancestors that lay wrapped in cloth and spray them with wine or perfume. Family members dance
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with the bodies as a band plays lively upbeat music. “For some, it’s a chance to pass family news
to the deceased and ask for their blessings — for others, it’s a time to remember and tell stories
of the dead.” (Bearak p. 6) Morticians around the US can help change the views on death by
sharing the funeral traditions from around the world so people can have different ideas in their
mind.
In conclusion, Morticians change views on death by supporting and sharing the
“Death Positive Movement”, educating people on the subject, and showing people different
ways cultures celebrate life. Death can be hard to process for anyone especially if it was
someone that had a very close relationship. The Death Positive movement is something that can
help people see death as a more open subject and they are able to freely speak on it. It is
important to educate people on death because it happens to everyone. It is also beneficial for
children to recognize death as a natural thing that occurs. Usually, kids have a lot of questions
when it comes to death so it is good for people to educate them in a way that is beneficial.
Education can help them not be afraid of death, and adults can learn how not to transfer that fear
onto their kids. Lastly, there are so many cultures around the world that have different funeral
traditions. Those traditions can ultimately change the way people view death.
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References
A Mortician Talks Openly About Death, And Wants You To, Too. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.wfae.org/post/mortician-talks-openly-about-death-and-wants-you-too#strea
m/0
Billingsly, Dale, personal interview, 6, April. 2020
Colosi, R. (2019, October 18). This millennial mortician is changing the face of the traditional
funeral industry. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/know-your-value/feature/
Millennial-mortician-closing-casket-traditional-funeral-industry-ncna1067486
May, K. T. (2016, January 4). Death is not the end: Fascinating funeral traditions from around
the globe. Retrieved from https://ideas.ted.com/11-fascinating-funeral-traditions-from-
around-the-globe/
Szczesniak, D. (2019, August 27). What is the "Death Positive" Movement? Retrieved from
https://www.usurnsonline.com/planning-ahead/death-positive-movement/
The Order of the Good Death. (2020, March 25). Retrieved from http://www.orderofthe
gooddeath.com/
The Order of the Good Death. (2020, April 11). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
The_Order_of_the_Good_Death
What being a mortician has taught me about dying. (2015, December 17). Retrieved from
https://waldmanfuneralcare.com/what-being-a-mortician-has-taught-me-about-dying/
