HW 53- Independent Research A

1.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/21/us/21funeral.html?ref=funerals

Precis: When 92 year old Nathaniel Roe passed away, his body was dealt with in a very non-traditional way. His children decided that it would be best to bury him at home. Rather than calling a funeral home, they bathed and dressed their father's body in his favorite clothes. He was then buried on his own farm in a coffin made out of pine by his own son. In addition to that, the family only paid $250 for the whole process! In a few states, there are laws that require a professional who is associated with the funeral business to handle the body, but New Hampshire is not one of them so the family was able to do what the pleased with their father.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/03/world/asia/03burial.html?scp=1&sq=osama%20bin%20laden%20burial&st=cse

Precis: When Osama Bin Laden was killed, the United States chose to bury him at sea rather than on land in Pakistan to avoid his body becoming a symbol for remaining followers. Supposedly, all rights of a Muslim burial were given to him despite his many crimes. Although some supported the fact that he was laid to rest at sea in order to prevent the creation of a shrine/symbol, there were many who were opposed to it as well.

Although the two news articles deal with very different topics, they both can be tied back to the common issue of efficient vs. religious burial. The man who was given a home burial by his family was highly efficient, considering it only cost the family $250 and they could have chosen whatever type of religious ceremony they wanted. Also, one of the women who was speaking in the movie from class said that to be around the dead body of a loved one can be helpful to achieve realization with the fact that the person is really dead, which, according to her, leads to a more comfortable experience. The burial of Osama Bin Laden was different in the fact that the man was most likely hated by all the people who were around to watch him buried. However, it was similar when looking at the efficiency of it. Although the reasoning that was given was that his body was not buried on land because the area would become a shrine and an inspiration for bad men, it sure is a lot faster to just dump a body in the sea than actually see to it that it is buried. The religious aspect of the burial was not likely decided by the victim in this case.

2.

I am fortunate enough to live right across the street from a funeral home (http://www.hdmafuneralhome.com/), so getting inside to talk to someone seemed easy enough. Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get much past the front desk, but the woman who was there was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. Being someone who has not actually been to a funeral home before, I asked her what it was exactly that they provided for people. She told me that they cover pretty much everything from preparation of the body to the services at the church as well as the coffin being set in the grave. But that was only for the traditional burial. She said that they handled cremation (which I found out costs $855 after going on the website!!) as well as customized burials. She described a customized burial as following many different religious customs, and also added that they had employees who would provide any kind of emotional support and consult needed. Typically, most funeral services take place mid-afternoon at this funeral home, and they usually do not handle more than one service in a day.