Grief, Mourning And Death Ritual

Series editor's preface
Introduction
Theories of grief
a critical review
Is grief an illness? Issues of theory in relation to cultural diversity and the grieving process
Four siblings' perspectives on parent death
a family focus
'Naturalizing' death among older adults in residential care
Just an old fashioned love song or a harlequin romance? Some experiences of widowhood
Discourse into practice
the production of bereavement care
The skills we need. Bereavement counselling and governmentality in England
'You have to get inside the person' or making grief private
image and metaphor in the therapeutic re-construction of bereavement
Supporting bereaved children at school
The child death helpline
A place for my child. The evolution of a candle service
Changing death rituals
Funeral ritual, past and present
Forget me not
memorialisation in cemeteries and crematoria
The cemetery
the evidence of continuing bonds
Hindu death and mourning rituals
the impact of geographical mobility
Grieving in public
Post-disaster rituals
Conclusions
References
Index.

"a must for any specialist and advanced practitioner's bookshelf." Journal of Interpersonal Care

This book focuses on what happens after a death has taken place. Drawing on social theory and anthropology, contributors examine responses to death as they occur within the unique set of cultural, social and historical circumstances which characterizes post-war society. The book does not just document and make sense of contemporary practices but also critically reviews the ways grief, mourning and death ritual have been approached by academics and practitioners in the field. It does this by combining substantial reviews with shorter illustrative examples of grief, mourning and death ritual as they are manifest in specific settings and with defined groups. These illustrative examples include personal and institutional responses to death at different points in the life cycle, and responses to different sorts of death - the death of children and death in disasters for example. The examples include commentaries on bereavement work and on changes in both the funeral industry and memorialization practices.

Grief, Mourning and Death Ritual is aimed at advanced students in sociology, anthropology and psychology with an interest in death, dying and mortality. It is also directly relevant to those concerned with loss and how to respond to it. The book is therefore suitable for use on courses in nursing, palliative care, social work and counselling.