| Literature DB >> 19462238 |
Abstract
This paper compares the (cultural) necessity of death/dying, perceived as a sequence of Imaginary--Real--Symbolic, to Van Gennep's three-staged rite of passage. If this logic is disrupted, the subject responsible necessitates attribution of special social status and can come to embody the imagery of a life worth living. This philosophical framework, which includes epistemologies borrowed from medical anthropology, demonstrates there is more for humans to lose than biological (Real) life; a far greater loss is to exist without (Symbolic) reason to live. A critique of prevalent quantitative methodology in assessing links between spirituality and the human body is added.Entities:
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Year: 2009 PMID: 19462238 DOI: 10.1007/s10943-009-9261-y
Source DB: PubMed Journal: J Relig Health ISSN: 0022-4197