Your reflections on the similarities and differences of dying in the past, dying in other cultures, dying in less developed countries (think about Cholera, Haiti, public health, what you’ve learned from our comparative look at health care in other countries)
From The New York Times:
ReplyDeleteCyberspace When You’re Dead
The Internet promises a kind of immortality. What if your last tweet is the one that defines you for all time?
http://nyti.ms/f7kCfy
As we saw at Highgate cemetery it used to be that death was a highly revered event. People spent a good amount of money on buildings around their coffin and other grave markers. Statues were even present in some cases to show any passer-by what the person looked like or what they were well-known for (animals, etc). Every marker displayed the person’s occupation, demonstrating that work was not just money but also a definition. In the past, they wanted to ensure that person would be known to any who passed though the cemetery.
ReplyDeleteToday a marker or headstone is generally much smaller and includes just a person’s name, date of birth and death, and if they achieved a military ranking. I appears as if we accept that the person is gone and mark the grave out of respect, but make it a symbol of remembrance not the remembrance itself. The general attitude I see today is that if you do something worth remembering in your life (help people, invent something, etc.) then the people affected will remember and may even tell their kids. In extraordinary cases you can make it into a book or article or on the internet.
As far as less developed countries, I’m not sure; some traditions probably depend on soil quality for burial and religious beliefs about death. In epidemics, it is possible that mass burials or cremations are used.
Many search for immortality in memories and seek to create a legacy. I do not think it is worth the energy to fear death and what could become of your name, however. I believe it is more important that between birth and death is life. What ultimately matters is what you choose to do with that life.
Dying in the past was a common part of life. In 18th and 19th century London, for instance, poor knowledge of health and sanitation lead to many cholera outbreaks, the cause of which was thought to be in the air up until the 1860’s. High infant mortalities and poor living conditions meant life was often cut very short. Where in the past, death occurred relatively quickly, today, death is often a long drawn-out process, in part due to advances in healthcare and technology. This makes death a more painful process for everyone involved, and causes many people to lose quality of life and die alone in a hospital. This removal of the sick and dying from interactions with family (who in the past would have cared for them) creates more fear surrounding its natural occurrence. It is also important to note that, while this may be true in more developed countries, death occurs much the same as it did in the past in less developed nations (same short life-expectancies, and a general lack of medical care).
ReplyDeleteBecause of my anxiety towards pain, I am relieved that I live now and not hundreds of years ago. I believe that medical advances allow people to live longer, healthier lives, even when a disease is present. It would be absurd for someone to die today from many of the causes of death from the past. From what I saw on our trip, I would imagine that people were more accepting of death, especially when someone was seriously hurt. For example, if I was a patient at the Old Operating Theatre, I would have rather died instead of having my leg chopped off without anesthetic. Today, we have general knowledge about our bodies, and we have treatments to help with serious illness. I think this is why people fear death. We think that there is a cure for everything and doctors can fix ANY problem. We believe that our bodies can handle anything that is thrown our way, and we fixate on the idea that we have yet to accomplish something that we need to do before we die. We also fear for the sake of our loved ones.
ReplyDeleteGeographical location plays an important role in the death of individuals. On a global scale, the United States has very few natural disasters. Less developed countries all over the world are faced with floods, hurricanes, droughts, and other disasters that kill hundreds of thousands of people every year. Because they do not have the funds to rebuild their communities, they are forced to do things that go against their cultural beliefs on life. For example, when disasters happen like the one in Haiti, the dead cannot be properly buried. I have learned that in times of tragedy, people do what they have to in order to survive. Americans are truly blessed and I think we often times forget that.
When Cholera broke out in England and people were dying off like flies and bodies were put in basements by the hand fulls is a very disgusting way to be buried. But when so many were dying all at once I can understand why it was done the way it was. The poor were not able to provide proper burials for their loved ones or they were too weak from the illness themselves. In the U.S. the health care here is so much better than over in London. Even the people who are living in London were telling us we do not want to go to the hospital in London because the care is not good. That should tell us something.
ReplyDeleteDying in the past was expected to be early in life. The barbaric treatment seems as if it was thousands of years ago. Medicine has changed the world, from the outbreaks in Europe that spread around the world to the changes Florence Nightingale made. How lucky are we! The disease I encountered at the age of 37 back then I would of made it to maybe 37 and six months. No cure no way of stopping the lost. Today medicine plays a big part, yet there is no cure for colitis and eventually you end up with colon cancer, but if caught early you could survive. Medical treatment and medical choices is extremely important whether you are rich or poor. We are all human beings. Giving back to society may be little but it is all I can do. So donating my organs after death is very important, skin, bones, eyes etc. anything that can help a child , mother, father, anyone who can survive, it's the least I can do. ONce you see a burn unit you can understand why. Once you see what bone marrow can do to save a child, you can understand why. I am thankful I am alive in this day and age, if it was 50 years ago I wouldn't of survived breaking my back last friday. It's hard to type up side down but I'm managing..Today I am expected to live a lot longer than my grandparents did, even with all of my issues. But I am very thankful that this was the chosen century for my to be alive in. Life expectancy today is well into the late 80' and early 90's.
ReplyDeleteIn the past, it was very common to die at a young age due to outbreaks, lack of knowledge (of sanitation, surgeries, treatments, microbes, etc.), and poor health care facilities. Today, we know a lot more about microbes and the importance of sanitation. Even with this knowledge, some of the poorer countries have difficulties applying it due to their environment and/or lack of money. Cholera for example has always been around due to poor sanitation of water sources. John Snow solved this problem for London, but poorer counties can’t always afford clean water sources. And without water, people die, so the people drink the cholera infected water, and the disease lives on. For the most part, I think death has always been dealt with reverence. We have always buried our dead in some way or another and held ceremonies in honor of their lives.
ReplyDeleteBeing 21 years old, I would be more than halfway through my life expectancy in the past. Things that would cause a few days of bedrest today were fatal in the past. Things such as childbirth, the flu, and some common colds could have been deadly. Unfortunately, in many undeveloped countries, this is still their story. They do not have the technology or money to receive preventative care, let alone care when they are sick. Many people do not even have clean water. People go everyday withouth their basic survival needs. When it comes to medicine, people will seek their survival needs before worrying about their health. Having a roof over their head and food in their stomach comes way, way before worrying about doctor visits. It is crazy to think about how much we actually take forgranted everyday.
ReplyDeleteFriendly and quick. For a person who hated going to the dentist I am not dreading my next cleaning!
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