Answer:
This paper explores the ways people create meaning about a person’s self postmortem through tombstones. Although today an increasing proportion of individuals are
purchasing tombstones before they die, the vast majority of stones are purchased and
designed by the bereaved after the death of their loved ones (Meyer 1992). Although the
entire ritual process surrounding death—visitations, funerals, wakes—is a way for the
bereaved to face the death of their loved ones, the tombstone itself is a lasting memory
and tribute to the deceased.
The way we have interpreted and thought about death and dying has changed
dramatically over time (Kellehear 2007). This, in turn, has greatly altered our burial
practices and assumptions about the dead and dying. Instead of placing goods and
personal items with the dead, we are now more likely to include such references to the
persons’ lives on their stones as opposed to within the caskets. Through an analysis of
tombstones, I sought to understand how the pictures, epitaphs, and even size and shape of
the stones serve to tell a story about the person buried beneath them.
Explanation:
