Partial dissertation in compliance with the requirements for the Master's Degree in Technology: Fine Art, Durban University of Technology, 2004. / This dissertation investigates how death as a subject matter in the work of contemporary artists living in European, American, and South African societies, relates to attitudes towards death in those societies. It examines how attitudes towards death have changed over the centuries, and how death is perceived in these societies today. It examines how the treatment of death in art today. differs from other periods because of these attitudes. Chapter One, Section One examines three major shifts in attitudes towards death In Western history, as outlined by Philippe Aries, a leading writer in the field. Chapter One, Section Two looks at death as a subject matter in Western art history, from ancient Greece to the mid-twentieth century. Categories discussed include funerary art, religious art, art and medicine, death personified, historical and analytical, personal, political art, and death and consumerism. Chapter Two, Section One examines attitudes towards death in contemporary Westernized societies, focusing on the medicalization of death, funeral rituals and disposal practices, and attitudes towards death in South Africa, specifically within the cultural framework of white, English-speaking South Africans. Chapter Two, Section Two examines death as a subject matter in the work of selected contemporary artists in America, Europe, and South Africa, and how it relates to attitudes towards death in those societies. Artists examined are Damien Hirst, Christian Boltanski, Joel-Peter Witkin, Andres Serrano, Donna Sharrett, Gerhard Richter, and Jo Ractliffe. The paper concludes by outlining the main arguments of the research and conclusions reached. / M

Several studies have attempted to assess the effects of death anxiety upon personality and behavior. However, only recently has research on this topic begun to develop a larger theoretical context within which many behaviors and intrapsychic mechanisms can be explained. The present study was conducted to test the hypothesis that people's symbolic investments, such as religious beliefs and status, are inflated when an individual is faced with events which make their personal mortality salient. Theoretically this inflation would help them buffer their anxieties about death. Subjects were selected for participation on the basis of scores on measures of status concern and religiosity, and were assigned to a mortality salience treatment or control condition. Results suggest limited support for the hypothesis. Though all predictions were not confirmed, some intriguing findings are noted. Implications of these findings are discussed.

AIM: The aim of this research was to describe how the health professionals manage sudden/abrupt deaths in the ED and to foster change in current practice by involving the clients (dead or dying clients and their families) and the health professionals. METHOD: Action research was the approach used in this four year research project, and co-researchers (nurses) from three Level I ED's in KwaZulu-Natal were actively involved in shaping and guiding the project. The participants involved in the research were health professionals, bereaved families and mortuary staff members. FINDINGS: An intervention model, the Dealing with Sudden Death Model, was developed in order to guide the therapeutic management of sudden/abrupt deaths in ED's. Along with this was the development of the family pamphlet, the Preparation Checklist and the Incident Evaluation Checklist. Following the implementation of this model the health professionals emphasized the fact that this model provided guidance and meaning to the care rendered to the dead or dying client, the bereaved families and fellow colleagues. The Dealing with Sudden Death Model had resulted in a production of knowledge and planned changes in the management of sudden/abrupt deaths in the ED's. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.

This thesis explores the experience of living with cancer and a terminal prognosis from the dying individual's perspective. It is based on qualitative sociological research. My study group comprised nineteen hospice patients, eighteen women and one man, aged 27 to 67, all of whom had been diagnosed with cancer. Thirty focused interviews were conducted; each respondent was interviewed at least once with a sub-group being interviewed a second or third time dependent upon symptoms, willingness to participate again and the need to explore issues further. My thesis is a sociological account of respndents' views and experiences. Its focus is the management and negotiation of dying and death at an individual level. A central tenet of my thesis is how self-identity is constructed and negotiated in different social encounters, in both the public and the private sphere. With reference to the public sphere I consider respondents' experiences of communicating with health professionals, and the difficulties they encountered. Within this discussion I look at how respondents constructed understandings of their illness within the context of their own biographies. I also discuss individuals' experiences of treatment, and the choices they made about this. In addition, I examine respondents' hopes and fears for their own deaths, and I suggest the notion of a 'good enough' death may be useful in interpreting their views. Repsondents perceived they had a spoiled identity as a result of their cancer and dying status. As a result, they spent a great deal of time and effort engaging in emotional work, in order to reassert their more valued roles. Much has been written about the emotional work of paid and unpaid carers. Here I suggest attention must also be given to the work of dying individuals themselves. However, I do not conceive of this emotional work as selfless, rather I suggest such work has benefits for individuals themselves. Emotional work enabled them to reaffirm or renegotiate more valued self-identities while alive, but in addition, I suggest that it also meant that respondents were able to contribute towards their own 'disembodied' after-death identities.

This dissertation offers a social history of death in post-World War II New York City and the ways in which social changes in the city shaped ideas about death, dying, and health among New Yorkers. During the period between 1946 and 1959, the city landscape would dramatically evolve as a result of new developments including changing disease patterns, increased prosperity, and anxiety over the unfolding Cold War. These changes were also instrumental in shaping how New Yorkers understood their mortality: death became an increasingly complex experience that could be interpreted and managed through advances in medical technology and individual efforts to stay healthy. Against the backdrop of the Cold War, health became an increasingly important arena to assert the power of the United States to the global world and death was designated as an unwanted outcome that was inevitable but not necessarily uncontrollable. Spurred on by the newfound significance given to the health of citizens, various actors such as the life insurance industry, cancer advocacy groups, and city health officials shifted the discourse on death by rejecting undue fatalism and highlighting human effort in preventing premature death. Drawing upon a wide array of archival sources that range from social service reports of terminal patients to annual reports of life insurance companies, this dissertation sheds light on how death became a complex conceptual construction that was commodified and modernized in the postwar period. The dissertation also explores the questions of social worth, namely whose lives mattered and whose deaths were concerning, and to whom these distinctions carried weight. The attempts to prolong the lives of individuals whose labor would contribute to society became a primary goal in post-WWII America, and these notions continue to shape contemporary public health debates in triaging the lives of people.

Thesis (DTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2000 / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Apart from the literature of Ancient Israel itself, and contemporary literature from the ancient Near East, archaeological data continue to be an important source for the historian seeking to elucidate a history of ancient Israel or certain aspects of that history. Notwithstanding certain developments in the field of Biblical scholarship as well as archaeology, the discipline of Biblical archaeology continues to survive as the framework in which these two disciplines join forces, and, quite possibly, may enter into the historical discourse in meaningful dialogue with each other. The historical discourse of course, is multidimensional, that is to say, the insights deriving from a diversity of methodological approaches are being integrated and related to each other in order to gain an improved understanding of the Old Testament (or certain aspects thereof), and the cultural-historical context from which the Old Testament came to be. Of decisive importance for Biblical archaeology is the foundation on which this dialogue takes place, after all, the basis on which the dialogue takes place has a determining influence on the collection and interpretation of archaeological data; and the use of them, similarly, on the understanding and interpretation of the Bible. The title of this dissertation suffices to indicate that the focus is on burial stories and burial customs in Palestine during the Iron Age. The dissertation then proceeds to show how a certain aspect of Old Testament views of death and dying, that is the coherence between posterity (the living) and the ancestors (those who have died) - which, among other things surface in the genealogical presentation of burial stories - can be understood from the burial customs in Syro-Palestine. In that respect the archaeological data contributes to an understanding of the death notices (presenting themselves as genealogical material in family burial stories) within the culturalhistorical milieu in which they appear. The coherence between religious documents and their cultural embeddedness contributes to a bettter understanding of the theological significance of the relevant texts. In addition to the fact that archaeology expands the database of historical discourse, important aspects of the Old Testament world of experience and historical context come to the fore that have so far been ignored in this discipline. An important aspect of burial customs, in terms of both the archaeological record (family graves) and the literary legacy of Ancient Israel (death notices and genealogies in the Old Testament) is the continuing relationship between the preceeding generations (the ancestors that have passed on) and the posterity (the community of those still living). The connection established in family burial stories between genealogical material (death notices) and the family burial customs highlights an important perspective, that is, the relation between the preceeding generations and the community still living as an element of the expectation of the future, or the future-directedness of Ancient Israel. The expectation of the future, with specific reference to the grave, is defined in terms of continuity in the generational community of familial relations. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Naas die literatuur van Ou Israel self, sowel as kontemporere literatuur uit die ou Nabye Ooste, bly argeologiese data In belangrike bron tot beskikking van die historikus wat In geskiedenis van Ou Israel of sekere aspekte daarvan wil verduidelik. Nieteenstaande sekere verwikkelinge op die gebied van die Bybelwetenskap aan die een kant, en van die Argeologie aan die ander kant, bly die dissipline Bybelse argeologie voortleef as die kader waar die twee dissiplines by mekaar aansluit, en bes moontlik tot In sinvolle dialoog met mekaar kan toetree in In historiese diskoers. Die historiese diskoers is uit die aard van die saak multidimensioneel van aard, dit wil se die insigte vanuit In verskeidenheid metodologiese benaderings word geintegreer en in verband tot mekaar gestel ten einde In beter begrip van die Ou Testament (of sekere aspekte daarvan) en die kultuur-historiese milieu - van waaruit die Ou Testament ontstaan het - te verkry. Van deurslaggewende belang vir die Bybelse argeologie is die basis waarop hierdie dialoog plaasvind. Die basis waarop die dialoog plaasvind, het immers In bepalende invloed op die versameling en interpretasie van argeologiese data; en die gebruik daarvan vir die verstaan en interpretasie van die Bybel. Die titel van die proefskrif dui reeds aan dat daar gefokus word op grafvertellinge en grafgebruike gedurende die Ystertyd in Palestina. Vervolgens word aangedui hoe In bepaalde aspek van die Ou-Testamentiese sieninge oor die dood, naamlik die samehang tussen die nageslag (lewendes) en die voorgeslag (ontslapenes) - wat onder meer ter sprake kom in die genealogiese aanbieding van die grafvertellinge - vanuit grafgebruike in Siro-Palestina verstaan kan word. In die opsig dra argeologiese gegewens daartoe by om die doodsberigte (wat by wyse van genealogiese materiaal in die familiegrafvertellinge na vore tree) te verstaan binne die kultuurhistoriese milieu waarin dit voorkom. Die samehang tussen religieuse dokumente en die kulturele bedding daarvan dra daartoe by dat ons die teologiese betekenis van die tekste wat ter sprake kom, beter kan verstaan. Afgesien van die feit dat die argeologie die databasis van die historiese diskoers verbreed, tree belangrike aspekte van die Ou-Testamentiese leefwereld of historiese milieu na vore wat grootliks geignoreer is in die vakgebied. 'n Belangrike aspek in doodsgebruike, beide wat betref die argeologiese rekord (familiegrafte) sowel as die literere nalatenskap van Ou Israel (doodsberigte en geslagsregisters in die Ou Testament), is die verbondenheid wat bly voortbestaan het tussen die voorgeslagte (ontslape voorvaders) en die nageslagte (nog lewende gemeenskap). Die verband wat gele word in die familiegrafvertellinge tussen genealogiese materiaal (doodsberigte) en die familiegraf bring 'n belangrike perspektief na vore, naamlik die verbondenheid tussen die voorgeslagte en die nog lewende gemeenskap as 'n element van die toekomsverwagting of toekomsgerigtheid van Ou Israel. Die toekomsverwagting word, met spesifieke verwysing na die graf, gedefinieer in terme van kontinurteit in familiale verband.

Among the AmaXhosa the death of a person is marked by a tradition called ukuzila - the equivalent of the mourning process. As a sign of spousal mourning, and to show respect, the remaining spouse has to put on a marker (be visible). However, it is mostly the woman who is under obligation to show her mourner status by wearing ‘clothes of mourning’. The discriminatory nature of the practice, especially pertaining to visibility and some of the detrimental effects on the widows’ health and safety have been documented by some researchers, but the reasons for the continuity of visibility remain largely unexplored. Taking into account the dynamic nature of ‘culture’, this research explored the discourses deployed in men and women’s constructions of ukuzila specifically focusing on spousal mourning and the continuity of widows’ visibility in spite of their resistance to it. The research used postcolonial feminism drawing on postructuralism as its theoretical lens. This theoretical lens provided useful concepts such as hybridity, visibility, surveillance and power with which to examine spousal mourning and conceptualised people’s subject positions as multiple, fluid and contingent. Furthermore, the research employed thematic and discourse analysis at its methodology. Discourse analysis was employed to identify and analyse the discourses utilised in the constructions of spousal mourning. The research was conducted through focus group discussions held with younger and older urban and rural men and women, as well as interviews held with widows and widowers and key cultural informants. Concerning the question of constructions of spousal mourning for men and women, visibility of the mourner emerged as a central and contentious issue. Some participants were of the view that one could show mourning by engaging in culturally appropriate mourning behaviour, whilst others were of the view that showing one’s mourning had to be visible by publicly displaying mourning through a marker. Another group proposed mourning “by heart”, whereby the mourners’ status could either be inferred from their behaviour, whereas others maintained that behaviour was not mandatory. Various justifications for the continued visibility of widows were advanced. These justifications included showing love and respect to the deceased husband; showing respect to the ancestors; and helping to monitor their own behaviour in order to ensure that it is in line with appropriate mourning behaviour. The continued visibility of widows was also used to regulate the widows’ sexuality. Widows were coerced to put on ‘clothes of mourning’ in order to ‘protect’ them from being approached by men for a relationship during the mourning period. The regulation of the movement of widows was also managed through visibility. Widows’ movements were restricted in order to protect the community from pollution or bad luck. For example, they were not allowed to visit places of entertainment or visit other households. Key discourses identified were the familial-‘ukwenda’, respect-‘hlonipha’, and male sexual drive (MSD) discourse. The familial - ‘ukwenda’ discourse is centred on the idea that one is ‘married to the household’, which includes the nuclear family and wider extended family including ancestors. According to the respect-‘hlonipha’ discourse, respect is due to others on the basis of their age, status, and more especially their gender. Showing respect (hlonipha) necessitates the avoidance of all forms of behaviour and utterances that could be deemed disrespectful. The MSD holds a widespread view of sexuality as a biological drive that resides within each male and it was drawn on to make sense of discontinued visibility among widowers, whilst visibility of widows continued. It is argued that it is these discourses, embedded in the ‘culture’ of the AmaXhosa and upheld by the family that sustain the discriminatory nature of the practice, especially concerning the continued visibility of widows in spite of the resistance that has been voiced.

This study was conducted on the mourning rituals of the AmaXhosa widows of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study focused on the descriptive presentation of the experiences of the AmaXhosa widows in the Buffalo City municipality of the Province. The study sought to establish the widows’ perceptions regarding the mourning rituals and to interpret their experiences within the context of contemporary cultural, religious, gender and socio-political influences. The experiences among the widows interviewed were found to have a similar context but their perceptions about the mourning rituals were different between the widows younger than 40 years and those older than 50 years. Widows from urban and rural areas of East London, Mdantsane Township and from within a 60 kilometre radius of East London were interviewed. Purposive random sampling was used to identify an equal number of either urban or rural voluntary participants for the study. Structured interviews were held with widows ranging in age from 29 to 91 years. An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the recorded discussions was conducted. The experiences of the AmaXhosa widows during the conduct of the mourning rituals are described. The key findings of the study indicated that most of the widows felt they had to go through the mourning rituals mainly to show respect for their departed husbands and so that the dignity of the family and clan was maintained. The mourning rituals seemed mostly to have negative implications for the widows such as a lack of family and financial support and being treated as social outcasts; however the rituals also seemed to help the women adjust to their new status as widows. Although the mourning rituals were embedded in the socio-cultural tradition generally followed by the AmaXhosa, religious beliefs also influenced some of the traditions by introducing changes in the way some widows conducted the mourning rituals. For example, some religions advocated for shorter periods of mourning than usual as well as wearing different types of mourning clothes from the usual black or purple dress. Overall the perceptions of the older widows aged above 50 years revealed that they had no reservations about performing the mourning rituals and quite readily and unquestioningly accepted the customs. The younger widows aged below 40 years on the other hand felt that the mourning rituals were biased against women and did not serve a useful purpose and even proposed changes to the manner in which the mourning rituals are conducted particularly the shortening of the mourning period from 12 to 6 months or less. However, they seemed to recognize the role played by the mourning ritual in lessening and possibly healing the pain and sorrow caused by their bereavement.

The dominant emphasis in Western models of bereavement is on the breaking of bonds with the deceased in order for healing to occur. Failure to let go often leads to a diagnosis of 'pathological grief'. This paper challenges the assumption that death invariably means that the bonds with the deceased have to be severed. Situating Western models of bereavement in a modernist context not only challenges the 'truth' claims of these models, but also facilitates a deconstruction of the elements that contribute to the emphasis on letting go. In contrast to these theories, two Xhosa rituals (umkhapho and umbuyiso) that seek to sustain the bond with the deceased person will be examined. Such rituals demonstrate that it is possible to both maintain the bond and for the bereaved person to move on with their lives. Despite different contexts, it will be argued that these Xhosa bereavement rituals have a contribution to make to Western models of bereavement and some implications for therapy will be explored.