This research study analyses the construction of meaning surrounding the embalmed corpse in contemporary England. It documents a process of social change in which Legal, Medical and Religious discourses concerning the dead, once dominant and unchallenged, now co-exist, if somewhat uneasily, with modern constructions of death and the possibility of an after life. The meaning of the embalmed corpse is considered to be constructed by different elements which are presented historically. Initially religious discourses governed the meaning of the body, which was preserved for religious reasons. 17th century surgeon-embalmers requisitioned the corpse for reasons of status assertion, presenting their arguments in medical terms. Contemporary hygiene issues, in tandem with legal issues, today have a powerful impact on the corpse, which is usually experienced by mourners in the context of contemporary consumer culture, after the process of embalming has occurred. The decline of religious practices also mean that the contemporary corpse has assumed a far greater significance than in the past. From the perspective of the sociology of the body, based on the seminal work of Turner, this thesis discusses how changing experiences of live bodies are inextricably linked with changing experience of dead bodies in contemporary societies. This is accomplished through an interpretation of the different meaning attributed to embalmed corpses, together with an appreciation of the work of Hertz and Van Gennep, both of whom identified, in pre-literate societies, the centrality and embeddedness of the treatment of the corpse to funeral rituals. The thesis reports some empirical investigations of embalming-related issues which provide an analysis of contemporary meanings of the corpse and cast light upon the contemporary structure of the English funeral world. Embalmers expect to produce a culturally acceptable ‘death disguise’ for the benefit of mourners whose encounters with the corpse are surprisingly numerous in contemporary death-denying society. Culturally acceptable death images appear to focus upon the dead being in a condition of 'liminal repose', where the illusion of rest is constructed. Embalmers and funeral directors comprise occupations that are quite distinct, although working with the dead in different parts of the same process. Highlighting the significance of corpse appearance, whereby it is rendered 'normal', has also highlighted the socio-cultural process whereby this transformation occurs. As the dead are carefully re-presented, this has hidden the 'true' condition of the dead and therefore also hidden the covert technicians, embalmers, who accomplish this transformation. Embalming therefore appears a hidden aspect of the social construction of the dead, as death is now estranged from the popular context.

The thesis investigates certain themes relating to death and after-life in the poetry of the late Republican and early Imperial ages within the wider context of Roman literature and religion. The emphasis on the evidence of literature rather than on that of epigraphy and art was prompted by the_ fact that the latter are by nature more static and formalized than the former. The investigation has suggested that the Roman poets register and enlarge, as a rule, the ideas on death and after-life current in their time and thus promote a tradition which can be traced back, through the Greek classical age, to Homer and Hesiod. Although genuine Roman concepts and feelings persist, the general impression is that we have to do with a body of Hellenistic ideas. The concept of the Di Manes seems to· preserve something of the early Roman feelings of respect and fear towards the souls of the deceased, but it is found enriched with new and varied connotations. We can hardly speak of native Roman divinities of the underworld, with the exception perhaps of Orcus. Instead, the Greek figures of Dis (Pluto), Proserpina (Persephone), and Hecate, are very prominent in Roman poetry. This applies also to the demonic figures of Hades like Charon, Cerberus, the Erinyes (Furies) and others. Nor could the Latin authors ignore the imaginative topography of the Greek lower world. Vergil gives to the traditional theme of catabasis, the descent of a hero to Hades, scime Roman colouring in Aeneid 6, but on the whole the descent of Aeneas is simply the fullest example of a motif popular with Greek and Latin authors. Roman poetry also reflects most of the ancient ideas about the destiny of the human soul after death. Moreover, hero-worship and divine honours paid to mortals seem to have found a fertile soil in the traditional Roman concept of the holy ancestors (D! Parentes). The fusion of Greek and Roman elements in this area is best expressed in the works of Vergil. In sum, the investigation confirms the impression of the fluency and mobility of religious ideas in the Roman-Hellenistic world of the first century B.C. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Through an analog between film and memory, I argue contemporary Japanese visual media constantly remediates this relationship in order to develop a more inclusive, plastic indexicality that allows media without direct material contiguity access to an indexicality not typically attributed to it. Amidst the early twenty-first century shift from old, mechanical media to new, electronic media, each Japanese text engages the West through intercultural discourses and intracultural responses, just as Japan has continually encountered the West since its forced opening by Commodore Perry in 1853. The plasticized indexicality figured by contemporary Japanese visual media implies the plastic nature of abstracted referents such as memory. I examine these issues through three texts, each representing three different contemporary Japanese visual media forms: the live-action film, After Life (Kore-eda Hirokazu, 1998), the anime film, Millennium Actress (Satoshi Kon, 2003), and the manga, Black Butler (Yana Toboso, 2006-ongoing). Each text remediates film and memory as analogs in ways particular to their own medium to refigure indexicality as inclusive of their own medium, revealing a cultural discourse wherein contemporary Japanese visual media engage with abstracted realities such as memory. By plasticizing and abstracting the index through its remediation of film and memory, contemporary Japanese visual media reveal visual media's, especially anime's and manga's, ability to relate to culture. Their refigured index is inclusive of all visual media, allowing each the opportunity to index subjective memory and experience. After Life introduces this possibility by privileging its memory-film recreations as a higher fidelity index to memory than documentary, though documentary's remediation informs this index. Both Millennium Actress and Black Butler extend After Life's inclusive possibilities to suggest that their painterly realities are not divorced from reality, but rather representative of its decentered reception as subjective experience and memory. As media technology extends human beings, through new media such as the internet, it also abstracts us from certain material interactions such as reading paperback books or speaking to friends rather than texting them. Contemporary Japanese visual media suggest that as old media make way for new media, we should readjust our preconceptions about media's relations to culture, for as our world becomes digitized, even animated, the painterly realities found in film, anime, and manga bear more relevance than ever to how we construct our worlds, inside Japan and across the world.

No description available.

Are the threshold experiences encountered between waking and sleeping similar to the liminal space between life and death? The sights, sounds, and bodily sensations experienced in the unconscious void blur the lines between the unknown and our conscious existence. Using the figure, I portray how the body might exist in these transitional moments. Through my investigations into sleep paralysis, dream states, and notions of an afterlife and the soul, I explore how we perceive the self in these altered states of consciousness.

The thesis explores the subject of purgatory and its relative value for modern people. It summarises: 1. The manner in which biblical texts used to underpin the doctrine; 2. The history of the doctrine within the Roman Catholic Church and the reaction to it during the Reformation and beyond; and 3. Contemporary formulations of purgatory and purgatory-like ideas. The thesis argues, from several perspectives, that a modern formulation of the doctrine is: 1. Reasonable; 2. Biblically consistent; 3. Meets the criteria of an established Tradition at practice within the Church; and 4. Is capable of assisting people in understanding and appreciating the existential questions of death and the after life. The thesis is approached from the angle of a Legal Counsel presenting an argument for acceptance of the thesis. / SYS THEOLOGY & THEOL ETHICS / MTH (SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY)

99 leaves printed on single pages, preliminary pages and numberd pages 1-87. Includes bibliography. Digitized at 600 dpi grayscale to pdf format (OCR), using a Bizhub 250 Konica Minolta Scanner. / Thesis (MPhil (Philosophy))--University of Stellenbosch, 2000. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Death is a universal phenomenon and each culture develops its own ways of coping with it. The reaction of people to death also involves a complex network of relationships. To appreciate their responses to this phenomenon requires an understanding of the socio-cultural context in which these responses occur because they influence the individual's responses to issues of life and death. In the African context and indeed in the Zulu culture, death is a continuation of life in the world hereafter. The deceased renews his relationship with his ancestral relatives. Various rites and ceremonies are performed to mark his reunion with his ancestral relatives. For the living, the rites and ceremonies mark a passage from one phase of life to another requiring some readjustment. The belief in the existence of life after death also affects the nature of these rites and ceremonies, the social definition of bereavement and the condition of human hope. The belief in the existence of the ancestors forms an integral part African religion and its importance cannot be over-estimated. This belief flows from the strong belief in the continuation of life after death, and the influence the deceased have on the lives of their living relatives. The contact between the living and the living dead is established and maintained by making offerings and sacrifices to the ancestors. The ancestors, therefore, become intermediaries with God at the apex and man at the bottom of the hierarchical structure. However, for the non-African, the relationship seems to indicate the non-existence of God and the worshipping of the ancestors. Women play a pivotal role in issues of life and death, because African people recognize their dependence and the procreative abilities of women to reconstitute and to extend the family affected by the death of one of its members.Social change and Westernisation have affected the way the African people view death. Social changes have been tacked onto tradition. A contemporary trend is to observe the traditional and Christian rites when death has occurred. The deceased is then buried in accordance with Christian, as well as traditional rites. The belief in the survival of some element of human personality is a matter of belief and faith. It lessens the pain and sorrow that is felt upon the death of a loved one by giving the believer hope that one day he will be reunited with his loved one and thereby easing the fear and anxiety of death. Thus, the purpose of this investigation is to critically analyse the African perception of death and its implications with special reference to the Zulu people. The objective is to expose the complexities, diversities and the symbolism of death. The essence is to demystify the African perception of death and to indicate that the perception of death is not necessarily unique to African people in general and to the Zulu people in particular. Other groups like Christians have perceptions of death particularly with regard to the world hereafter. The aim of the investigation of the topic is to reveal some of the underlying cultural beliefs in death, enhance those beliefs that are beneficial to society and discard those that are anachronistic. Since culture is dynamic, not everything about African tradition will be transmitted to the future generation; there is bound to be cultural exchange. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die dood is 'n universele fenomeen en elke kultuur ontwikkel sy eie manier om daarmee om te gaan. Mense se reaksie op die dood geskied binne 'n komplekse netwerk van verhoudinge. Om mense se reaksie op hierdie fenomeen te begryp, is 'n verstaan van die sosio-kulturele konteks nodig waarin hierdie reaksies plaasvind, aangesien dit die individu se reaksie op lewe en dood beinvloed. In die Afrika-konteks en ook in die Zulu-kultuur word die dood beskou as die kontinuasie van lewe in die hiermamaals. Die oorledene hernu sy verhouding met sy voorouers. Verskeie rituele en seremonies vind plaas om hierdie gebeurtenis te identifiseer. Vir die oorlewendes is die rituele en seremonies die oorgang van een lewensfase na 'n ander en vereis dus 'n mate van aanpassing. Die geloof in die lewe na die dood beinvloed die aard van hierdie rituele en seremonies, die sosiale defenisie van rou en die toestand van menslike hoop. Die geloof in die bestaan van die voorvaders vorm 'n integrale deel van Afrika-religie en die belangrikheid daarvan kan nie oorskat word nie. Die geloof vloei voort uit die sterk geloof in die hiermamaals en die geloof aan die invloed wat oorledenes op hulle lewende nasate het. Die kontak tussen die lewendes en die lewende oorledenes word daargestel en onderhou deur offerandes aan die voorvaders. Die voorvaders word dus gesien as intermediere skakel in 'n hierargie met God aan die bokant en die mens aan die onderkant. Maar, vir nie-Afrikane, dui hierdie struktuur op die nie-bestaan van God en die aanbidding van die voorvaders. Vroue speel 'n deurslaggewende rol in kwessies van lewe en dood aangeslen Afrikane hul afhanklikheid besef van vroue se voortplantingsbekwaamhede om die famile wat deur die dood geaffekteer is te herkonstitueer en te vergroot. Sosiale veranderinge en verwestering affekteer Afrikane se houding teenoor die dood. Sosiale veranderinge is bo-oor tradisie geplaas. 'n Hedendaagse neiging is om Christelike sowel as tradisionele rituele na te volg na 'n sterfte. Die oorledene word begrawe in ooreenstemming met sowel tradisionele as Christelike praktyke. Die geloof in die oorlewing van elemente van die menslike persoon is 'n kwessie van geloof. Dit verminder die pyn en lyding na die afsterwe van 'n geliefde deur aan die gelowige oorlewende die hoop van 'n herontmoeting te bied - en verminder dus die vrees en angs wat met die dood gepaard gaan. Dus is die doel van hierdie ondersoek om 'n kritiese analise te maak van die Afrika-siening van die dood en die implikasies daarvan, met spesiale verwysing na die Zulu-nasie. Daar word probeer om die kompleksiteite, verskeidenhede en simbolisme van die dood aan te toon. Die essensie hiervan is om die Afrika-houding teenoor die dood te de-mistifiseer en te wys dat die siening van die dood nie noodwendig uniek van Afrikane in die algemeen en spesifiek van die Zoeloes is nie. Ander groepe soos Christene het beskouinge oor die dood met spesifieke verwysing na die hiernamaals. Die doel van die ondersoek is om sekere onderliggende kulturele oortuiginge aangaande die dood te onthul, om die beskouinge wat voordelig is, te versterk en om die anachronistiese beskouinge aan die kaak te stel en so te diskrediteer. Aangesien kultuur dinamies is, sal nie alles wat betref die Afrika-tradisie oorgedra word aan toekomstige generasies nie; daar sal noodwendig kulturele interaksie wees.

The thesis explores the subject of purgatory and its relative value for modern people. It summarises: 1. The manner in which biblical texts used to underpin the doctrine; 2. The history of the doctrine within the Roman Catholic Church and the reaction to it during the Reformation and beyond; and 3. Contemporary formulations of purgatory and purgatory-like ideas. The thesis argues, from several perspectives, that a modern formulation of the doctrine is: 1. Reasonable; 2. Biblically consistent; 3. Meets the criteria of an established Tradition at practice within the Church; and 4. Is capable of assisting people in understanding and appreciating the existential questions of death and the after life. The thesis is approached from the angle of a Legal Counsel presenting an argument for acceptance of the thesis. / SYS THEOLOGY and THEOL ETHICS / MTH (SYSTEMATIC THEOLOGY)

Le contexte culturel du continent africain est marqué par la prégnance des ancêtres. C’est pourquoi la théologie de l’inculturation de la foi a pensé devoir s’approprier la thématique de l’ancêtre afin de rapatrier sa signification symbolique au service de la foi chrétienne. Mais, par-delà une mise en rapport informelle entre le Christ et l’ancêtre, l’inculturation de la foi a évolué vers la formalité spéculative d’une ancestralisation du Christ. En cela, la théologie du Christ-Ancêtre nous place devant un procédé périlleux de subsomption logique qui introduit et risque d’absorber le Novum du Christ dans les catégories et genres antérieurs de la culture de réception. L’ancestralisme n’est pas une réalité simplement africaine ; il traverse la Bible et d’autres cultures comme celle de la Rome antique et de la Chine ancienne. Par-delà la causalité exemplaire de l’ancêtre que la mémoire du passé suffit à fonder métaphysiquement, la théologie chrétienne ne peut pas lui reconnaître une causalité efficiente. En juste foi chrétienne, c’est l’efficience du Ressuscité qui bouleverse tout le régime d’efficience salvifique antérieur à la nouveauté chrétienne. Le Christ n’est pas un Ancêtre, il est l’Eschaton. / The cultural context of the african continent is marked by the pregnancy of the ancestors.That is why the theology of the inculturation of the faith thought of having to appropriate the theme of the ancestor to repatriate its symbolic meaning in the service of the christian faith. But beyond an informal putting in report between the Christ and the ancestor, the inculturation of the faith evolved towards the speculative formality of an ancestralisation of the Christ. In that respect, the theology of Christ-Ancestor places us in front of a precarious process of logical subsumption which introduces and risks to absorb the Novum of Christ in the categories and the previous kinds of the culture of reception. The ancestralism is not only african reality; it crosses the Bible and the other cultures as that of ancient Rome and ancient China. Beyond the exemplary causality of the ancestor which the memory of past is enough to establish metaphysically, the christian theology cannot recognize it an efficient causality. In christian faith, it is the efficiency of the Resuscitated that upsets all the category of salvific efficiency previous to the Christian novelty. Christ is not an Ancestor, he is Eschaton.

This dissertation explores the traditional Ba Venda concept of the after-life vis-a-vis the Ba Venda Christian understanding of eternal life. In this dissertation a historical background of the traditional Ba Venda and how there were reached with the gospel of Jesus Christ will be given. A comparative study of the traditional Ba Venda and Christian Ba Venda beliefs and practices is given. It will be noted that the Ba Venda Christians of BeitBridge district revert to traditional beliefs and practices concerning the dead. These rituals carried out by the Ba Venda Christians show the syncretistic elements practiced. A central question therefore is "Are the Ba Venda Christians operating on the basis of Christian concept of death and hereafter?" It is argued in this dissertation that the Ba Venda Christian concept of death and after life is the blending of Ba Venda Christian and Ba Venda traditional beliefs and practices, particularly when it comes to death and burial practices. / Religious studies / M.A.(Religious)