History of Death in the West Early Medieval

History of Death in the West Early Medieval 500 -1000 Death is tame, understood, controlled

The Immortal Soul Saint Augustine author of the early medieval philosophy of dying. 1. Plotinus & Neo-Platonism – Our true selves are non-physical, immortal souls. These souls are “trapped” in our bodies. Philosophy must free them to rejoin the non-physical divine reality with which we are one. 2. Belief in in a God … who rewards the good and punishes the wicked. St. Augustine fully embraces paradise or eternal damnation as our only postmortem options. 3. Original Sin – God created human beings with a sinless nature. But we disobeyed God and in doing so tainted and corrupted our nature very badly. Among the things Original Sin gave us is the fact that we all have to die. Original Guilt – not only are we all flawed because Adam and Even sinned, we all are also guilty of their sin; we inherit not merely their broken nature, but their guilt

The Rise of Rationalism Two Main Elements 1. The Birth of Scientific Thinking a) Separation of faith and reason b) Ockam's Razor – “The simplest explanation is the best one. ” 2. The stress on Individualism (a new concept of the individual) a) The Rise of “romantic Love” – The Troubadours: Tristian & Isolde

Later Medieval 1000 -1400 The Bubonic Plague 1347 -1351

The Enlightenment 1650 -1750 Death is Wild and irrational and best ignored

THE ENLIGHTENMENT ▪ 1650 -1750 CE ▪ The Rise of Modern science ▪ Scientific thinking replaces supernatural causes (demons, gods, witches, etc) with natural ones (weather patterns, gravity, germs) ▪ A move from pre-scientific to scientific thought: two examples a) witches, b) vampires

PRE-MODERN THINKING – EVENTS ARE EXPLAINED IN TERMS OF SUPERNATURAL AGENCY

PHYSICS …. . BIOLOGY Newton 1687 Darwin 1859

The Romantic Period 1750 -1850 Celebration of Emotion Over reason (counter enlightenment) Death is exciting, appealing, But precisely because it is wild And beyond our conrol

Victorian Death and Mourning

Death Today Stages of Death and Burial Practices: 1. Traditional 2. Modern 3. Postmodern