Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T19:20:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Clarissa de Franco.pdf: 2843243 bytes, checksum: 058e4e9d3543513e81706dc5bd3fcd2f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-04-24 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The main objective of this study is to research the components of the universal imaginary that represents death and how this imaginary reverberates in the reports and the content of the dreams of grave-diggers in five cemeteries in the city of Sao Paulo. By imaginary, we mean the "connector" between the internal and external environments of human beings, through the symbolic and imagistic language. Our hypothesis was based on the possible existence of an archetypical imaginary of death, with elements that transpose historic moments. We also assume that, because grave-diggers work directly with the grossly material side of death the visual impact of the corpse, the dirt and the smell of the decomposing body and because they play an important role in the painful rite that the deceased one´s family goes through, they would be exposed to an intense unconscious experience of feelings related to death, in contrast to apparent posture of denial. We tried to investigate this intensity of emotional contents through semi-directed interviews and questionnaires, looking for reports of beliefs and feelings about dying. We also heard reports of dreams, which supported the presence of emotion-laden imaginary elements related to death, as well as archetypical contents in different cultures, as had been originally hyppothesized. We worked with grave-diggers of the Araçá, Consolação, Lapa, Vila Mariana and Vila Nova Cachoeirinha cemeteries / O principal objetivo deste estudo consiste na investigação de elementos que compõem o imaginário universal que representa a morte e de como esse imaginário reverbera no relato e nos conteúdos de sonhos de sepultadores de cinco cemitérios de São Paulo. Imaginário está sendo compreendido como o conector entre os universos interno e externo do ser humano, por meio da linguagem simbólica e imagética. Nossa hipótese baseou-se na suposição de que poderia haver um imaginário arquetípico de morte, com elementos que transpõem momentos históricos. Supomos também que os sepultadores, por trabalharem diretamente com o lado denso da morte o impacto do defunto, a sujeira e o cheiro da decomposição do corpo e sendo protagonistas do doloroso ritual que a família do morto vivencia, estariam expostos a uma vivência inconsciente exacerbada de sentimentos em relação à morte, contrariamente o que sua postura aparente, de negação, mostra. Procuramos investigar essa exacerbação de conteúdos emocionais por meio de entrevistas semi-dirigidas e questionários, buscando relatos sobre suas crenças e sensações frente o morrer. Também foram ouvidos relatos de sonhos, que possibilitaram a constatação de elementos imaginários pesados em relação à morte, bem como de conteúdos arquetípicos, presentes em diversas culturas, como inicialmente suposto. Trabalhamos com sepultadores dos cemitérios do Araçá, Consolação, Lapa, Vila Mariana e Vila nova Cachoeirinha

MA (Xitsonga) / Senthara ya M.E.R. Mathivha ya Tindzimu ta Afrika, Vutshila ni Ndhvuko / The study examines the taboos of death and their significance in the context of Xitsonga culture in the Hlanganani Area of the Vhembe District, Limpopo Province of South Africa. The study deals with social taboos pertaining to death and how Vatsonga perceive their dead. The principal aim of the study is to highlight the significance of taboos pertaining to death, the burial and the post-burial rites/rituals amongst Vatsonga in the Hlanganani Area. The study guarantees the continuity and resilience of the post-burial rituals. Accordingly, the study shows that the taboos are largely reflected through language. The study will recommend that the taboos as the important components of Xitsonga culture must be incorporated in the South African education system. More importantly, the study shows that language and culture are interlinked and cannot be separated. The researcher will employ the Renaissance Theory. The Renaissance Theory argues that a number of indigenous cultural identities, values and norms which used to be functional for society in the past can still be used today if properly utilised because they are the building blocks of indigenous existentiality. It is an emerging postcolonial philosophy which envisions reclaiming the glories of the African past. It posits that to think of the African life is to think of the unity of the shared perennial communitarian values. Data will collected through interviews and focus groups.