Anthropology of Life Death and Culture - Annotated Bibliography Example

Anthrороlоgy оf lifе dеаth аnd сulturе: A reflective essay (Insert Name of the Student) (Insert Name of the Instructor) (Insert Name of the Course) (Insert Code of the Course) (Insert Submission Date) Kaufman, SR, & Morgan, LM 2005, ‘The Anthropology of the beginnings and ends of life’, The Annual Review of Anthropology, vol. 34, pp. 317-341. The study reveals the different themes that anthropologists assume as they try to explain the beginning of life and death. The debate about when a child is referred to as living and whether there is life after death continues to puzzle many. I believe that these two are best answered based on the culture that one lives in. In reference to abortion, I believe that life begins at conception but the mother bears the right to keep or terminate the pregnancy as the foetus cannot make ruling. However, this should be done in affordable legal means. Death on the other hand is a passage into another world. The body dies off but the soul lives on. This is also recognised by many cultures as evidenced from the different grieving methods in the study. There are those who take fresh flowers to the grave and speak to the dead. This affirms the personhood associated with death. Human beings are emotive creatures and they tend to cling on to the relationship they had with the dead person. I believe this is the reason many cultures have personified life after death. The desire of humans to have control over their destiny has led to the development of such technology as stem cells, egg and sperm donors, organ donation and such. This is in a bid to remove the uncertainty of life and give it a more predictable nature. However, I feel that this is an exercise in futility. Though for medicinal value they are relevant, I believe the giving and termination of life supersedes human understanding. Keeping a brain dead body in life support machines only gives the family false hope. Abu-Lughod, L 1995, ‘A tale of two pregnancies’, in women writing culture, eds R, Behar & DA, Gordon, Berkeley: University of California Press. The distinction between medieval Egypt and modern America in giving birth tells of the changes that technology has brought forth. The narrator tells of how women in Egypt relied on traditional myths and culture to heal infertility and help ease the burdens of pregnancy in the 1980’s. She then draws us to modern America where infertility and the intricacies of pregnancies are explained scientifically. Technology has made it easier for women to give birth and also given hope to the infertile. The narrator is happy to carry a pregnancy via invitro fertilisation, a privilege her friend in Egypt would not enjoy in earlier years. It is every woman’s joy to raise her own kid and such technology is fulfilling the dreams of many women who would otherwise have remained childless by conditions beyond their control. However as the narrator notes, it comes at a price and is not always successful. I feel that methods such as invitro fertilisation are a preserve of the few who are wealthy. The poor cannot afford such services and I find it discriminatory. The government should look for ways to subsidise the costs so as to give all women equal opportunities. The story also brings to our attention the negative effects of modernity on pregnant women. Unlike in the earlier days in Egypt when women would get time off to take care of the pregnancy and get emotional support from other women through sharing, modernity only allows you to read from books or the internet that may not always be right. Neither do they offer the support a human being would. However, I feel that the benefits of technology outweigh the demerits. Lewin, E 1995, ‘On the outside looking in: the politics of lesbian motherhood’, in Conceiving the New World Order: The Global Politics of Reproduction, eds FD, Ginsburg & R, Rapp, Berkley: University of California Press. This study explores the challenges of being a lesbian mother in America. Though the study focuses on America, I feel that the challenges are a reflection of what lesbian mothers go through worldwide. The world is grudgingly accepting lesbians and gay people with some countries legalising marriage unions of either. However, the state of being lesbian is still looked down upon and it worsens when it comes to motherhood. Nevertheless, as the study shows, lesbians can make good mothers too. They even have the option to either adapt a child, insemination or get one with a man. Some go as far as asking the man to be a father figure to the child. This shows that they recognise the need for a father figure in their child’s life only that their sexual orientation does not allow them to do so. It also shows the defiance for the patriarchal family lifestyle but still harbour the natural desire to raise a child just like other heterosexual women. Motherhood comes with benefits too as society is more accommodating of lesbian mothers than non-mothers. I however feel that they still have a long way to go before the society and major religions integrate them. There will still be more court cases to fight the legitimacy of their motherhood or marriage unions. As the study reveals, some want to have families too and enjoy the benefits that heterosexual families have such as bereavement leave, property ownership and so on. This shows that they have the same innate desires as heterosexuals and I feel they should be given the same rights. Lock, M 2002, ‘When bodies outlive persons’, in Twice dead: organ transplants and the reinvention of death, Berkeley: University of California Press. This chapter draws attention to the ambiguous interpretation of death. It can be either ‘biological death’ or ‘real death’. Biological death is termed as brain dead whereas real death is termed as failure of the heart’s function. It is important to note that other body organs still function after the brain has lost control over them although via a ventilator. What I find intriguing is that once a patient is declared brain dead, there are other organ surgeons waiting hastily to take away essential organs. It is even more disturbing to know that the doctors ask the family’s consent for the donation at a time when they are yet to internalise the loss of a loved one. I concur with the Japanese in this case that the bereaved family should not be pressurised to make such a decision. Death should be respected and more so the bereaved family. The government should ask its citizens to sign consent forms for such donations in their health just like they sign medical insurance. This will give the patient the right to make a personal and informed decision over the treatment of his body after his demise just as a will works. This reduces pressure on the family for making such decisions. Though some families may feel that it is the right thing to donate organs, the deceased may not have wished for the same. Though the organs are used to save another person’s life, I feel that the sanctity of death should be maintained. From personal experience of losing a loved one through such a process, the family at the time is usually too traumatised to make an informed decision. Janneke Peelen (2009): Reversing the past: monuments for stillborn children, Mortality: Promoting the Interdisciplinary Study of Death and Dying, vol 14, no. 2, pp. 173-186. The Dutch represent an interesting case study about the social position of stillborn children in society. They provoke the traditional belief system and unveil lots of hidden emotions among parents that the society had chosen to ignore for a long time. The study shows how still birth was and is still regarded in religious circles. Catholic being the dominant religion in Netherlands failed to recognise the stillborn children as having lived and therefore they did not warrant a proper funeral. This practice as is evidenced from the public’s outpouring of emotion after the unveiling of the first monument shows that it was practiced half-heartedly. The parents had no choice or control over such children. They had to hide their grief as per societal standards. The unveiling of the monument reopened the wounds of loss in the parents but it also gave them a chance to grieve openly without inhibitions of culture. They would celebrate a life and at the same time mourn a death. This I believe is an important ritual for any bereaved person so as to accept the reality of death and possibly move on. The recognition and acceptance by the general public of the burial rituals also provides the necessary emotional support for affected families. I however feel that the Catholic Church should publicly acknowledge that they made mistakes in the past. As evidenced from the interviewees, the performing of rituals only solves the problem partially and from the emotional bond that parents have with their children from conception, it is only fair that they are granted their wishes. References Abu-Lughod, L 1995, ‘A tale of two pregnancies’, in women writing culture, eds R, Behar & DA, Gordon, Berkeley: University of California Press. Janneke Peelen (2009): Reversing the past: monuments for stillborn children, Mortality: Promoting the Interdisciplinary Study of Death and Dying, vol 14, no. 2, pp. 173-186. Kaufman, SR, & Morgan, LM 2005, ‘The Anthropology of the beginnings and ends of life’, The Annual Review of Anthropology, vol. 34, pp. 317-341. Lewin, E 1995, ‘On the outside looking in: the politics of lesbian motherhood’, in Conceiving the New World Order: The Global Politics of Reproduction, eds FD, Ginsburg & R, Rapp, Berkley: University of California Press. Lock, M 2002, ‘When bodies outlive persons’, in Twice dead: organ transplants and the reinvention of death, Berkeley: University of California Press. Read More