Verified Document

Sociology The Impact Of Baby Thesis

Traditional Twentieth Century funeral services focused heavily on heavenly rewards and made little of the earthly grief of survivors. (Bregman, 2001, p. 331) it was as if life was nothing but a long and complicated prelude to death. Numerous individuals; however, have challenged this approach, preferring instead to recognize that human life is something of value. The deceased is someone to be remembered for their unique contributions to the lives of those around them. "To celebrate the uniqueness of an individual life at a funeral is more true to the character of God as creator of nature and persons, than to disallow particularities and focus exclusively on a universal, theocentric but excessively abstract message." (Bregman, 2001, p. 331) by humanizing the experience of death, baby boomers try to make sense out of an essentially incomprehensible process. Traditional religion appears alien to many baby boomers, their own human achievements are what is tangible. Real world achievements link them to the earth as a living planet, and bind them to a vaster human society that is represented in microcosm by the world of their families, friends, job, and so forth. Personal achievements became personal contributions to a world that lives on beyond them. Modern funerals attempt to place the individual within this context; to lay claim to a piece of eternity. The personal speeches, poems, songs, and other presentations, that have become such a feature of contemporary funeral services, reveal each person as a kind of god in miniature. Divinity works through us all, and together we all form parts of a cosmic whole - or so run the beliefs of many baby boomers. Each individual's contributions are but pieces...

The story of the individual's life is a form of liturgy.
Baby Boomers have transformed the funeral service. With an emphasis on individuality in all aspects of social relations, the baby boomers have made the process of death a highly individual rite of passage. The choice of how to dispose of the body often reflects the individual's concern with the environment and her or his place therein. Cremation can be a way of "giving back" to the earth. Baby boomers are also more concerned with the processes of death than those who went before them. Thoughts of a gruesome death have resulted in a greater emphasis on a life well-lived. Baby boomers wish to be remembered as the individuals they actually were rather than as the idealized types that a distant deity might have desired them to be. One's life is a part of the cosmos. One's acts shape the world that remains to those left behind. Baby boomers believe the funeral service should be a reflection of the individual and his or her place in the real world. In every way, the baby boomer outlook reflects a world that is at once vast and personal - life is a part of death.

References

Bregman, L. (2001). 17 the Death Awareness Movement. In Religion and Psychology: Mapping the Terrain; Contemporary Dialogues, Future Prospects, Jonte-Pace, D. & Parsons, W.B.

Eds.) (pp. 319-331). London: Routledge.

Hayslip, B., & Peveto, C.A. (2005). Cultural Changes in Attitudes toward Death, Dying, and Bereavement. New York: Springer.

Kopp, S.W., & Kemp, E. (2007). The Death Care Industry: A Review of Regulatory and Consumer Issues. Journal of Consumer…

Sources used in this document:
References

Bregman, L. (2001). 17 the Death Awareness Movement. In Religion and Psychology: Mapping the Terrain; Contemporary Dialogues, Future Prospects, Jonte-Pace, D. & Parsons, W.B.

Eds.) (pp. 319-331). London: Routledge.

Hayslip, B., & Peveto, C.A. (2005). Cultural Changes in Attitudes toward Death, Dying, and Bereavement. New York: Springer.

Kopp, S.W., & Kemp, E. (2007). The Death Care Industry: A Review of Regulatory and Consumer Issues. Journal of Consumer Affairs, 41(1), 150+.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Sociology: Changing Societies in a Diverse World
Words: 9606 Length: 30 Document Type: Book Report

Sociology: Changing Societies in a Diverse World (Fourth Edition) George J. Bryjak & Michael P. Soroka Chapter One Summary of Key Concepts Sociology is the field of study which seeks to "describe, explain, and predict human social patterns" from a scientific perspective. And though Sociology is part of the social sciences (such as psychology and anthropology), it is quite set apart from the other disciplines in social science; that is because it emphasizes

Sociology of Families: Making Families
Words: 3136 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

They are therefore not determined or restricted by factors such as norms, morals or external principles. A concise definition of this view is as follows: Constructivism views all of our knowledge as "constructed," because it does not reflect any external "transcendent" realities; it is contingent on convention, human perception, and social experience. It is believed by constructivists that representations of physical and biological reality, including race, sexuality, and gender are

Sociology Teenage Pregnancy Teenage Pregnancy
Words: 1558 Length: 5 Document Type: Thesis

Teenage pregnancy issues should be undertaken by putting into practice programs that will help prevent teenagers from becoming pregnant. Health care providers need to devise intervention programs that allow family, school and society in general to provide the necessary information to teenagers through sexual education. The family portion should involve parental education and information on sexual health issues. Schools need to be more focused on offering courses about gender issues

Sociology Social Influences on Health
Words: 2570 Length: 8 Document Type: Essay

In terms of the plainness of gendered inequalities in the health and longevity of women, compared with men, the majority world demands our notice. The world-wide toll in terms of women's raised levels of mortality and morbidity corroborates that limited or negligible access to political power, land-ownership, education, sexual self-determination and earning ability has detrimental bodily effects (Bradby, 2009). While sociologists have long studied the aspect of illness, it has

Baby X In Most Modern Societies Education
Words: 1120 Length: 3 Document Type: Research Paper

Baby X In most modern societies education relies heavily on the distinction between sexes. Therefore, transgressions were severely punished until late in the twentieth century even in societies that like to present themselves as the most civilized and advanced in the world. Scientists such as: biologists, sociologists, psychologists and psychiatrists, are continuously asking questions about the origins of sex differences and sexual reproduction. These are topics that are still raising

Sociology of the Family
Words: 2425 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

divorce rate in the United States is rising at an alarming rate. Just after the Civil War, approximately 5% of marriages in the United States ended in divorce. The divorce rate increased to approximately 10% by the 1920s and approximately 35% by the mid-1960's. By 1990, the divorce rate in the United States had risen to 50%. In a span of 125 years, the divorce rate in the United

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now