The Theories of Death Anxiety Put Forth by Sigmund Freud and Ernest Becker - Essay Example

According to Freud, death anxiety is only a phobic symptom of underlying anxiety, which can be traced through childhood experiences and attributed to present-day life development (qt. in Fink 650). The argument of Freud made most people despise his theory on death anxiety (Kastenbaum 101). Freud eventually made a realization about the essentiality of considering the issues of death, but it was his prior argument that made a mark on people. Diversely, Ernest Becker also had his theory on death anxiety. He argues that the language and traditional actions common to individuals are the things that bridge their ontological encounters with death (Becker qt. in Fink 650). Thus, the anxieties of people are, in reality, attached to their feeling of fear of death.

3. Explain how a person who is coping with the threat of death may use denial.
Denial is deemed as a form of defense mechanism, where an individual denies conscious awareness of unpleasant realities (Rousseau 3998). Death, being one of the unpleasant realities people face, is often subject to denial. Death denial is common those people who have a terminal illness. Dying patients usually face the reality of them knowing that their lives may end at any time in the future. However, to ease the burden carried by a dying individual, the idea of death is disregarded, and thus, denial comes into being. Dying patients may not recognize denial of death because it is some sort of an unconscious mechanism that leads them to become resistant to the reality of facing death (Rousseau 3998).

Family members also have a role to play in allowing the dying members of the family to deny the reality of death. As much as they want to accept the fact that the illness may lead to death, there is this little amount of hope that keeps them positive about not seeing the dying family member suffer more because of fear. Physicians view death denial as both advantageous and disadvantageous. It is advantageous because this may help alleviate emotional stress, thus, helping the patient to cope with the illness, and eventually make use of the remaining time to deal with unfinished business (Rousseau 3999). On the other hand, it is disadvantageous because it may become harmful to the natural process of dying (Rousseau 3999). Notwithstanding, death denial is a reality that society continues to practice to protect themselves from suffering from emotional distress, which is also detrimental. Read More