Abstract This paper deals with death and dying and the decisions that have to be made at such a time. It deals with advance directives and surrogates and substitutes who make these decisions when the patient is no longer able. It looks at the patient's rights and how the ultimate decision on treatment is theirs. The writer also discusses how important advance directives are to ensure their wishes are followed, if they are unable to speak for themselves.
From the Paper "Elizabeth Kubler-Ross is credited with introducing the subject of death and dying as a legitimate subject for discussion in medical circles and the community as a whole and her book 'On Death and Dying' is required reading in most major nursing and medical schools. Kubler-Ross, herself a physician, began her pioneering work with the terminally ill at the University of Colorado Medical Center in Denver and her interest in death and dying was sparked by a visit to a concentration camp where thousands of children ... "
Abstract This paper discusses and reviews the theme of death and dying in Sherwin Nuland's book, "How We Die". The paper explains that the book looks at the effects that death and premature dying have on the patient and the patient's family. The paper also looks at the psycho-emotional effects of dying described in the book as well as how the book describes the process of dying and death from a medical perspective.
From the Paper "How We Die" by Sherwin B Nuland is a text describing the mechanisms of a number of diseases or conditions that lead in many instances to premature death and which, in all cases, are accompanied by a number of disabling physical effects and equally traumatic psychological impacts experienced by the patient and his or her family. Nuland, himself a surgeon and medical educator, is as concerned with describing the psycho-emotional effects of dying as he is with describing the..."
This paper is a personal, experiential, explication essay on the notion of death and dying, which the author faced during his father's five-year fight against esophageal cancer and eventual death.
5,930 words (approx. 23.7 pages), 4 sources, MLA, $ 141.95
Abstract This paper explains that the idea of death and dying is abhorrent; yet, in the case of the author's father, his dying and death was a process of renewal for him, for the author, for the author's mother, and siblings and members of the vast family of seventeen children into which his father was born. The author points out that he does fear death, not the actual act of dying, but knowing of the incompleteness it brings. The paper explains that Elizabeth Kubler-Ross's formalism on the stages in death and dying helped him to put his grief in a better context and to categorize his feelings.
Table of Content
Introduction
Individual Coping Strategies
Differential Treatment from Others
The Will to Live
From the Paper "The concepts of heaven and hell have evolved over time. This extends for all major religions. Practitioners are admonished to seek good over evil for fear that they might face the fires of hell in the scary and graphic detail elaborately laid out by Dante in the "Inferno." It is not the hell fire and brimstone of the time of the awakening as Christian dogma evolved in the United States. Even the pope has spoken about heaven and hell actually being experienced here on earth, through how a person conducts his or her life. Going back to the differences between eastern and western thought of dying can be summed up in the concepts of Sogyal Rinpoche. In his "Tibetan Book of Living and Dying" he puts forth the idea that Tibetans believe that the best way to live ones life to the fullest is to spend every waking moment of it preparing to die. Such a morbid fascination with death would have no place in the western thought. And yet there is some truth to it."
Abstract This paper discusses how the subject of death and dying in Western industrialized nations is seen as taboo. The paper goes on to explain how attitudes towards death in Eastern cultures and traditions, on the other hand, are essentially different and that there is a greater integration and cultural acceptance of death, particularly in the Tibetan tradition. The paper then refers to various literary works on the subject to highlight various attitudes about death and dying.
From the Paper "However, the process of sanitizing and sequestering death does not solve by any means the real and existential problem of death as the most inevitable and sure aspect of any individual's life. One cannot simply ignore death. As a result of the movement in Western Countries and cultures towards a materialistic and secular mode of existence, the fear of death and the end of life has in fact been exacerbated, rather then reduced. This has led to many psychological and philosophical issues that have tended to dominate cultural discourse in the last few decades. The fact that medical science is being shown to be incapable of dealing with many disease and causes of human death has also opened up the fault lines and questioned the scientific and medical attempts to sanitize and prevent the public from being concerned about death. "
Abstract The writer raises the issue of having a friend as a nurse who seems to be falling apart on her job and she is thinking about taking a death and dying course. The writer would you recommend participating in such a course. The writer points out that nurses experience grief when they see patients die that they have taken care of in the past few weeks or even months. Further, the writer believes that encouraging her to take a death and dying course might make the difference in whether the nurse leaves her position and/or decides to take another career.
From the Paper "You have a friend who is a nurse, and you notice the nurse is acting differently. The nurse is falling apart in her job working in the high mortality setting in her placement. She is thinking of leaving the profession of nursing but is deciding whether or not to take a death and dying course, do you advise her to take the course or not? Imagine taking care of patients day after day who are terminal and eventually die. Most nurses try not to show their feelings around patients and families."
Abstract In this paper, the writer makes use of the views of a doctor and of Socrates to demonstrate different views on death and dying. The writer examines the concept of a "good death" and death with dignity. The writer discusses how death with dignity currently refers more to medical science easing the pain of death, than to the Socratic idea.
From the Paper "A great deal has been written in recent years about the concept of a good death or death with dignity. Sherwin B. Nuland stated that an entire mythology has grown up around the process of dying. Like most mythologies, it is based on the inborn psychological need that all humankind shares. The mythologies of death are meant to combat fear on the one hand and its opposite wishes on the other. It will be argued in this report that death with dignity is now understood ... "
Abstract This paper gives an account of the author's personal experience of watching a loved one die from cancer and how the victim of the cancer, as well as her loved ones, experienced the stages as outlined in Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's book, "On Death and Dying".
From the Paper "Josianne was diagnosed with uterine cancer a year and a half ago, prompting a hysterectomy and subsequent radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Because the success rates for treatment of her particular cancer seemed relatively high, her friends and loved ones remained hopeful that Josianne, too, would be among the nearly 75% who survived the ordeal. Josianne, a lawyer in her late forties, was the most optimistic and didn?t for a second feel that death was near. However, once her tract of radiation and chemo was over, doctors administered a series of tests, which revealed that the cancer had somehow spread into her lymph glands. The spread spelled almost certain death; once the cancer made its way into the lymphatic system, little could be done to halt its progress. We all watched on as tumors showed up in Josianne's cat scans, appearing in her lungs and colon and forcing her to have a colostomy and continual blood transfusions. Until that point, Josianne and her husband kept their hopes high that somehow she would overcome the illness and experience a spontaneous remission. However, her body began to deteriorate rapidly after a certain point; she could no longer eat and her kidneys began to fail."
Abstract This essay discusses the various perceptions and responses to death and dying across multiple cultures (American, Hindu, Buddhist, and Native American). The paper also applies Kubler-Ross' five stages of dying as a theoretical framework.
From the Paper "This research explores the literature across cultures on death and dying in order to highlight the impact of culture on reactions to death and the dying process. A theoretical framework is established using Elizabeth Kubler-Ross's five stages of dying followed by a succinct discussion of the reactions and attitudes toward death and the dying process of four cultures: Buddhist Hindu, Native American and American. By illustrating the different reactions and attitudes toward death of these cultures it is revealed that..."
Tags: Kubler-Ross, grief, burial, mortality, reincarnation, celebrity, religion, Christianity, afterlife, family, gerontology, health care, advance directives, hospice
Abstract This paper proposes a analysis for looking at how different cultures and religions view funeral rituals and body disposal and why they are viewed differently. The paper also looks at the different elements that influence an individual's views on death and dying.
From the Paper "Disposal of the dead often varies from one culture to the next and one religion to the next. The practice of cremation represents a modern alternative to long drawn-out burial services that take a heavy emotional toll on survivors and the rising cost of traditional funeral rituals."
Abstract This paper is a consequence based argument that conveys a point of view for the right to die. It uses consequences, ethics, religion and philosophy to discuss the issues surrounding death and dying.
From the Paper "Moral absolutism sometimes called a deontological approach to ethics suggests that there are eternal moral values and eternal moral principles that are applicable everywhere .This is an accepted position oft hose who believe in a God who .."
Tags:Death with dignity, right to die, eithanasia, ethic, relativism, teonological, pain and suffering, patient choice
Abstract This paper explores the various themes in William Faulkner's novel "As I Lay Dying". The writer believes that the dead central character is typically thematic of voodoo cultures that existed in Mississippi's colorful history. Another theme explored is that of the oral tradition in the old South, where the writer looks at the folklore and cultures of the people living in Mississippi. The paper also explores the overall theme of death and dying.
From the Paper ""As I Lay Dying" is a unique novel in that there is no discernable protagonist. In lieu of the protagonist is a corpse, Addie, who is dead for most of the book. The novel is written in the first person, from the perspective of Addie and her family, although the perspective shifts for most of the chapters between Addie's self-interested family members with Addie herself only contributing one chapter. Addie's dying wish is to be buried in Jackson, and the story is about how she makes it there. Although Addie is not alive for much of the novel, her son Jewell reflects her interests after she's dead and acts as her legacy."
Abstract The following paper examines how most authors look at death from their own unique perspectives, when writing about it. The writer explores the different ways in which death is something that appears to be the central point of just about any piece of literature. This paper makes reference to several novels where death is a key focus and is presented either through the novels' characters as they contemplate the meaning of life or shown through surviving characters. The novels made reference to are : 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad , 'The Lovesong of J Alfred Prufrock' by T.S. Eliot and 'To the Lighthouse' by Virginia Woolf.
From the Paper "The other ramification the death of Michael Furey has on Gabriel is that he comes to the realization that nobody could ever truly know another person. After learning that Michael Furey risked, and lost his life for Gretta, Gabriel became deeply contemplative. First he shows typical characteristics of a jealous lover. He wonders if Gretta and Michael Furey had a sexual relationship and also ponders other aspects of their relationship. From the time that Gretta tells Gabriel that the song "The Lass of Aughrim" made her cry, Gabriel knew it was over a past boyfriend that she related this song."
Abstract This paper describes Craven's book about a bishop who must tell his young Anglican missionary who is living in a remote Indian village in Canada that he has only two years, or less, left to live. The paper explains the conflict the bishop faces as to how and when to tell the young vicar and describes parts of the book, citing the page numbers to which these descriptions refer. Furthermore, the paper explores the book's theme about death and dying by referencing passages in the book and then explains how this book is, in addition to being a dramatic story, an historical and cultural look at Canadian Indians.
From the Paper "Readers also know just how "rough and tumble" and backwoods this setting is, when I page 19, a good description is given of the hang-logger "Calamity Bill" (the opposite of Broadway's "Calamity Jane"?). Because his float is subject to its nails coming loose when boats pass to fast and create wakes to rough, he is known to come out of his A-Frame "shaking his fist and swearing" ? but the most interesting and raw rural aspect of Calamity Bill is the fact that the inner of his two sets of long-legged underwear is ?part of his skin.? The putrid smell of rancid underwear just might be close to the smell of death itself, although the author may not have intended for that linkage. "
Abstract This paper examines how through Ernest J. Gaines's novel "A Lesson Before Dying" and Wendell Berry's "Hannah Coulter", we can see the importance of giving the living a lesson about death. It looks at how death is viewed in both stories as a natural part of life and as something that should be used to educate the living. It shows how in "A Lesson Before Dying", this education occurs through Jefferson's character, when he is told to die with pride and therefore set an example for others, demonstrating to them that there is nothing to fear from death. It also discusses how in "Hannah Coulter", the idea of dying with dignity is demonstrated through Nathan's traumatic struggles with the fact that he watched so many die without dignity.
From the Paper "In Ernest J. Gaines novel, A Lesson Before Dying, readers are presented with a very serious dilemma regarding the death penalty, and the concept of inflicting death as a punishment. The story is about a man who is arrested and persecuted for a killing that he, in fact, had no part in. This character, Jefferson, was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time; as a result of his bad luck, he was accused of killing three men. However, Jefferson was simply there; he did nothing wrong and took no part in this crime. The unfortunate circumstance for Jefferson is the fact that he is poor and black, and these two stereotypical factors prevent must individuals from actually believing that Jefferson is innocent. In response to the present crime, Grant Wiggins comes into the story. "
Abstract This paper argues that physician-assisted suicide (PAS) should be legal, because it is morally and ethically allowable for a doctor to provide the assistance to a terminally-ill patient to end his or her own life, allowing them the right to determine when and how his or her life should be terminated when that patient is dying from an incurable or debilitating illness. The author points out that the person in question is going to die from the disease and should be the sole determiner of when to end his or her suffering even if it is contrary to the moral or religious viewpoints of family members, doctors or other caregivers. The paper stresses that death in this manner gives the person the opportunity to die with dignity and perhaps even discover the meaning of one's life.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Types of Euthanasia
Physician-Assisted Suicide
Death and Dying Dying Should Be Seen as a Time of Growth
Conclusion
From the Paper "When a doctor becomes involved in the premature death of a patient, this is known as physician-assisted suicide which provides the patient with the dignity to die as painlessly as possible and with a sense of personal contentment. In most cases, the patient that requests PAS is not suffering from any mental condition which means that he/she is of sound mind. This greatly aids the attending physician, for it makes it clear that the patient should be given the right to die with dignity when that patient is afflicted with an incurable disease, such as certain types of cancer, Parkinson's or Alzheimer's diseases."
