A story about a blog on death. . .
http://www.salon.com/2012/10/27/americas_next_top_mortician_it_really_improves_your_life_to_be_around_corpses/?source=newsletter
Here's a link to the videos
http://www.youtube.com/user/OrderoftheGoodDeath
Watch a few and report back.
I believe that Doughty's videos are educational. I believe that it is interesting to see behind the scenes of that goes on with our corpse when we die. I can see her point of view as in it can help those who are mourning the death of a loved one. Knowing all the options that are out there is something everyone should know. Most would only know the traditional burial and cremation. I think in making these videos, this would only help rather than hurt. Obviously, as mentioned in the blog, Doughty mentioned about how she has way more positive critics verses negative. She doesn't do these videos to upset anyone or to prove a point, but to inform on a subject that is sensitive.
ReplyDeleteThis is very beneficial to society. She puts a her very positive personality into her work and I think that is beneficial to all of those who watch her videos. I read some of the comments under her videos and it seems like people love her, I mean come on who wouldn't love humility when talking about such a depressing topic. These videos give ordinary people information on how to approach death topics. Maybe if more people would watch these videos the world would embrace the whole death topic, rather than run from it!
ReplyDeleteI also found Doughty's videos and blog to be very informative. I agree with Jessica that it is interesting to see what happens to our corpse when we die because I think everyone has questions concerning that specific topic. I like how Doughty uses humor to help with the topic of death and dying. I agree with her when she says, "we need to drastically change the way we confront death."
ReplyDeleteWith her "Ask a Mortician" videos, I think she is just simply trying to help people face their fears and see death/dying in a different way. Ultimately, as she mentions, her goal is to emphasize the acceptance of death and I believe that is exactly what she is doing with her videos. I think they have potential to help people on how to view and accept death in a better way.
Caitlin Doughty's YouTube vides and blog are light funny and chalk full of information on death. The way she goes about answering the questions she receives makes death seem less like a tabooed subject and more like what it is, an everyday natural occurrence. It seems to me that Doughty also makes a very good point when she says that one of the reasons that American culture has trouble with death is because we do not spend any time with the dead. In my experiences with funerals and death, the family members only see the body of the deceased after it has been dropped off at the church by the funeral home, looking clean, neat, and peaceful like the person is not dead but only sleeping. I can understand how this fleeting glimpse of the dead does not solidify in the minds of the family that their loved one is truly dead because the body does not look dead at all but only peacefully sleeping. Therefore, I agree with Doughty when she says that the family members should spend more than a few minutes with the body, in order to help them get closure and accept the fact that their loved one is not going to wake up. However, I disagree with Doughty’s other suggestions on how to gain closure such as helping prepare the body for burial. I disagree with this suggestion mostly because I don’t think many people would want to do it, since as Doughty pointed out our culture is one that is very squeamish about death and if we are so unwilling to face it how can we be willing to handle corpses?
ReplyDeleteThis is a great way to make the topic of death more accessible for conversation and discussion,
ReplyDeleteI believe that Doughty’s Ask a Mortician YouTube videos give insight into questions that usually people would be afraid to ask about death. She responds to questions in a way that allows viewers to understand the topic she is discussing while not feel like they are being lectured to. She is obviously very knowledgeable on the subject and likes to share what she has seen with her job with the public. I think that people would be more willing to get their questions about death answered because she is so open and honest about everything. I agree with Chelsea in that she is trying to let people "accept death" but not just any death, their own death. The responses she gives answer the question at hand while she adds her own flare to the way she discusses subjects. She has experience in the field which enhances her responses.
ReplyDeleteI thought these videos were great. They provide tons of factual information in a fun way. It's great to see someone making videos like this, because the majority of people dont have access to information like this.
ReplyDeleteOne video in particular really got me thinking (http://youtu.be/ahM6zFrSplo). This video discuses "traditional" vs "natural" burial. Recently my family lost our grandmother and while at the viewing my brother and I got to talking about how we want to be buried when we die. Personally I said that I want to be cremated. My brother said that he wanted to be buried naturally and then have an oak tree planted on top of his grave. Obviously these are both nontraditional ways to be buried and I'm curious, how do all of you want to be buried?
I enjoyed these videos. I do not think that death is all that disturbing to talk about, although I know that many people do not agree with this. I think it would be a good idea if people became more comfortable with death instead of always shying away from it. I can't help but think of The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling. There is a story called "The Tale of the Three Brothers." This is the story from the final harry Potter book. I love the final sentence, which says, "And then he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and, equals, they departed this life." I think that is the type of attitude that we need to have towards death.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure how I want to be buried. Being blown away by the wind has always held a certain appeal for me. However, I also like the Sky Burial of Tibetan Buddhism. A funeral pyre also holds sway over me. I have several different thoughts on the matter.
One of my teachers from high school told us how he wanted his funeral to be:
He wanted it to be a giant carnival, and no one knew why they were there. No one would be sad because they wouldn't know that it is a funeral. However, he was specific in the way he wanted his corpse treated. He wanted it to be covered in barbecue sauce, set aflame, and launched from a catapult.
These videos were very interesting to watch! And i agree that this woman puts an interesting spin on death and the burial process. She gives good information in a non-morbid way! It is hard for a lot of people to talk about death and the processes that go along with it, not everyone is going to be able to openly talk about it in this way or maybe at all. i agree with Morgan though, you have to use a little humor when talking about this kind of stuff sometimes!
ReplyDeleteI found that not only were her videos educational, but they were also entertaining. The fact that they were funny made it easy to pay attention to what she had to say. I found the one about natural burials interesting because I did not know that this was an option. I found it funny when she said that the ground shifts and things rise making it hard to cut the grass. I find it good that she can make light of her work because it can be such a difficult subject. I think that I would definitely go to her videos for more information if needed. She was very informative and found her very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI like the style of her videos due to her personality she brings to these death topics. After watching some of her videos, they are not only educational but also very entertaining. I kind of relate her to Jenna Marbles who is a huge Youtube personality. Not as extreme as Jenna Marbles, but brings that funny, random style but this time relates to important facts and information. It is kind of odd to keep in mind that people have to deal with dead bodies in preparation for funeral services and burials/cremation. This reminded me that my great aunt, Darlene, is a part-time beautician that deals with cadavers. She lives in Nova Scotia, Canada so I only get to see her maybe once a year. I actually saw her about a two months ago and it was the first time I ever heard of her being a beutician. Upon talking to her for probably 30 minutes about it, some of the information she shared with me was interesting. Even though it is her job, she still gets freaked out when dealing with the deceased. She even said that she refuses to go in all by herself in the dead of night (no pun intended). Which makes sense because I know I certainly wouldn't, but for someone who gets paid to do this you think they would get over some of these fears. It was just something I found interesting when thinking about those who deal with cadavers on a daily basis. Although they get more used to it than we do, something about a corpse is just "unsettling."
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