Homework 59- SOF Prom

I was part of that group that did not participate. But as junior at our school that to me is what is expected. However, I was asked to attend prom with someone. My reason for not going was because I didn't have the money to pay for it ($150 for admission, tux, limo). I didn't regret not going this year, but now I think it would have been cool to be a part of it considering for the past two weeks, all I was hearing about was prom. Next year I plan on attending prom, I’m not one to overthink it and talk about it as a rite of passage or a really important night; I just think it is a good experience to have. I feel this way because it gives you one more chance to be around everybody, all your friends, enemies, ect., from high school. You also get that at graduation (if you pass) but I think it’s different at prom because people act more like themselves without their family around. For me, that is one high school experience that I would like to have.

There are a lot of reasons not to participate as well. The cost of prom is a big one. I definitely agree that prom is pricy. Especially at our school. I have friends from other schools that attended prom this year, and their admission was only $20-50 as opposed to $150 at our school. $150 is the starting cost. Then girls normally buy a dress, which could be pricey, depending on the dress. Most guys wear tuxedos to prom, which not many own, and Internet research shows that a tux rental is around $50-150. The new average cost is up to $250. Then an important component is the transportation. Nobody wants to show up to prom coming from the subway. Limo rentals in New York City, among all places are expensive. I looked it up and it was running close to $100 a person if four couples are sharing the limo for the night. The cost with transportation is now $350. Then adding miscellaneous costs like a corsage or accessories and the total cost of the night is somewhere around $400 dollars. Which I know a lot of people can’t afford for just one night. The cost of prom is one dominant social practice that would keep me from attending.
 Next year I’ll be going to prom, paying whatever costs come my way,  and I think I’ll enjoy it, with a date from out of school, but it will still just be another prom. I don't think it will be that magical night people envision. Life is not a fairy-tale, and we don't even have prom royalties. Our prom is just prom, where for most, the after party is the highlight. 

Homework 58- Prom Interviews

Interviews:


Person that hasn’t gone to prom: John T.
   John is part of that anti-prom movement. He doesn’t want to go to prom but thinks that he might end up going. His main problem with prom is the money. He said, “It’s pointless to spend all of that money for one night. It’s $150 just to get in. It’s ridiculous.”
   He then went on to talk about how he knows a lot of people that just go to prom to get drunk and have sex, and these motives are hidden by our culture. He cleared it up by saying what we think are dominant social practices are actually dominant social expectations, and the actual practices vary from the expectations.The whole idea of prom to him is outplayed, overpriced and lame. 
Person that has been to prom: Mark
Mark, who attends a catholic school, lives in the suburbs, and had his prom last week recalled his experience with me. He began by describing his prom experience: "First, I got picked up, met my girlfriend, and we went to our friends house to take pictures with him and his date. After that we went to our school where the prom was being held. When I got there whole thing felt cheesy and kinda lame. Looking around, everybody was in the same style of attire, girls in short dresses, guys in tuxes." 
    He went on to explain that the prom wasn't all that bad, but he didn't enjoy it that much because he was thinking about the afterprom. "It's all about the afterprom." He was saying how the afterprom is where all the excitement happens. The drinking, the hookups, the REAL memories. He said if it made sense to he would have just skipped the prom and went straight to the afterprom. He added that none of this seemed strange, that prom is prom, it's all the same stuff, but the afterprom parties are what makes it unique. 
     When it came to all the "rite of passage" talk, he said he overlooked it. That it wasn't a rite of passage to him, he has other times to dress up and look nice. He added that this type of event isn't a naturally occurring event, it takes months of planning, but it is "a very superficial experience."
Significantly older person: Dave
Dave, who is my uncle from Florida, has an opinion on everything, and loves to tell stories. He grew up in Florida, and he said that prom was a big thing for him, for everyone around him.He was the quarterback of his football team, and in a suburban school that translates to the most popular. He had no problem with asking girls. So when it came to asking a girl it wasn't hard for him to find a date. He said he didn't mind any of the preparation either. He liked to dress up. He did feel like even with all the preparation the night didn't feel "special". He felt it was just something everybody does.
He said that the prom is a rite of passage for some people, and for others it's meaningless. It all depends on the persons experience prior to the events. Some people he grew up with had money, and their parents had big parties all the time so he was used to it. He said the prom is just another high school social event over everything else.
Analysis:
Everybody has their own view of prom. Some people are excited to attend, for whatever reason it may be, like Mark. Some people know they want nothing to do with prom, like John. Some people still remember their prom and see it as an important social experience. I don't necessarily agree with any of these ideas, but I can understand them.
John doesn't want to go because it is costly and there will be a lot people he doesn't want to be around. Which I agree with, prom can cost a lot of money at least at our school, considering it costs $150 just to get in. I got asked to go with somebody this year and I would have gone but I just didn't have the money. But it's true there's a lot of other things that are more worth spending the money on. It is just one night, and unless your really into it, as mark said, it's all about the afterprom.
It can't be that simple. Prom isn't a uniform thing, it changes from region to region,school to school. By saying prom is this or prom is that isn't being accurate. While there is a set of general expectations, it wouldn't be ideal to say each prom follows every dominant social practice. It really is what you make.

Homework 57- Initial Thoughts On Prom

Bubble: Is prom actually an important event or just hyped up?
     Prom affects people on different levels. For some people, it is a rite of passage, a special night. To others, it is just another night to go out, have fun, drink, do whatever. At our school Prom isn't that big of a deal. It almost got cancelled this year and I don't think that too many people would have been disappointed if it had. I think that a big part of this feeling has to do with where we are from. Most of us have grown up in New York City, and because of that we live our lives a more fast paced then people in the boondocks or the suburbs. I know people from the suburbs treat prom differently then at our school. Then again, it could just be our school. I think that getting mugged for the first time is a bigger rite of passage then prom. Prom doesn't reflect the real world for most people. Prom is just one last gathering before people go their separate ways. One last night to remember from high school.
     Prom's real significance is about everybody (that would like to participate) to have one last memory before they leave. It goes hand-in-hand with graduation, but I feel like graduations are about reflecting on the last four years they spent at this school.  Prom is another thing that's reflected one during graduation. It's like going out with a bang.
    One thing I look forward to, that I probably shouldn’t is riding in a limo. Whenever I see a limo my first thought is: what famous person is inside there? What rich person is in there? This is a time where I’ll be that rich person, even if I’m not rich. It’s just an unconscious desire to be involved with flashy social symbols representing wealth.
            There is one distinct image that comes into my mind when thinking about prom. It’s when people walk through the doors and everyone has a reaction. I know that image comes into my head because it is portrayed in a cliché way in many different movies, tv shows, ect.
     Prom is what you make it. You can get caught up in having a perfect night, having a dream date, or just expecting prom night to be a life-changing experience. If you don’t take it seriously and don’t have high expectations, it is just another night. I think by analyzing prom this much; we might just be feeding the hype. By putting labels like “rite of passage” and “a night of high importance” it is trying to add more then what’s actually there.

Questions:

How does the significance of prom change for different areas?

When did this prom tradition start? What was its original purpose compared to what we see prom as now?

If prom is supposed to be one grade making memories together is it acceptable to bring outside dates?


All of the other units (besides birth) aren't optional, but prom seems like it is, so is it actually optional, or somehow does everyone get involved somehow?

Homework 56- Cumulative Project Comments

To Jasper
Jasper's Project
For a project that doesn't really prove anything, you did a good job writing about it. You wrote a decent amount, and in that amount you started to make some insights. What you didn't do was expand on the insights you started to make. You could have talked more about the serious feelings that you felt and the dress code that you noticed.
What your blog did do: It was entertaining. It was like Seinfeld, about nothing, but at the same time the way you wrote made it more interesting then most other projects with heavier content. It was definitely more interesting then my project.
What you should have done is reflected on the experience. You could have wrote about what you learned through your failure. There was a couple of things you could have talked about learning but you failed to do so.


To Lucas
Lucas' Project
Funny. Entertaining. Well-written.
Just some words that describe this post. While it isn't 5 pages of writing or some breakthrough in the care of the dead industry, it was a good summary of the failed project attempt, and it showed what you learned. I feel like this post and your elevator speech add up to make a project worth reading about.
You and Jasper had similar projects, if you haven't read his already. I think yours had more reflection and professional language, which really balanced out how interesting your writing was with the content.
I do feel like you could have wrote about what you expected to learn. And what you didn't learn that you expected to. Reflection on what could have been done differently would have been nice too. But overall this was a good post. It turned an unsuccessful experience into a project.


To Beatrice
Beatrice's Project
I think that this post is thorough and insightful. It is also very fitting for you. No suggestions, it seems pretty perfect.


To Martyna
Martyna's Project
I thought your project is maybe the most interesting in the grade.
You took something that we haven't even discussed in class. I think that the steps you made are understandable and logical.
What this project is lacking is analysis. You could have analyzed each step and given examples for everything.
The illustration that you included also adds to the project because it interests the reader. I know it interested me.
I'd say overall this is a very interesting, well written project. It included concise explanations and was easy to read. Good work.
============================================================
From Martyna:
You summarized the process of embalming and presented an overview of the industry around it. Your work is very clear and to the point in a way which keeps the reader interested.
Its great that you actually decided to write a paper (against your own will) after your original plan didn't work out. I think you did a good job with your research, bearing in mind this was a last minute idea.
What shocked me most was that some people consider embalming an art. In my opinion, thats taking it all a bit too far. But still, people can have many different views...

From Chris:
YEAHH!!! EMBALMING. I think embalming was hyped up by Andy to be very gruesome and some sort of of miserable thing. Although it seems very violent how can you say this when the person is dead. Also it isn't always like the person doesn't know their dead body is going to be involved. It is not grave robbing and stripping the body for organs. Anyway back to this, I think you decided to right a very factual paper that gives clear alternatives and doesn't just complain about a problem. Its a paper but maybe in person you can tell me why you decided to write about this. I think this was actually pretty interesting and the best part in my opinion was the alternatives.


From Leon. Dad, Mentor:
This project was less insightful then the last, but better written. It did do a good job of explaining the topic of embalming, and provided clear alternatives. I do think that you could have explained more about the effects of formaldehyde rather then just say it is toxic. You could have also gone into why the process is bad outside of the environmental effects. You started to discuss about the funeral homes being greedy. It would have made the project a little more insightful if you built upon that and made it a second focus. Overall this is a solid project and it is well written. 


From Jose. Friend, Protege:
I liked reading about this because I know almost everybody in my family has been embalmed. It's just something that you don't think twice about, and this is trying to get people to see they should think twice. Everything was short and concise, so you don't get lost. I agree that your best section was the Alternatives, as chris said above. I think this was a strong project and very interesting.

Extra Credit 1: Cemeteries

For this assignment, Chris, Jasper, and I went to visit two cemeteries. Both of the ones we went to were downtown near the world trade center- St. Pauls Cemetery and Trinity Church Cemetery. Both cemeteries are historic, and I was surprised that there were a lot of other people walking around and taking pictures. These cemeteries are tourist spots. Which isn’t the original purpose of the cemeteries, as people aren’t going to grieve anymore, they want to see people like Alexander Hamiltons grave. Though I must admit, I’m not much better then these people because I wouldn’t have been there if I weren’t getting credit for it. If I had the chance I would have had a more fulfilling experience where I visited some of my families graves, but because they are all far out in long island, or not in New York, that wasn’t really an option.
Walking around, it almost didn’t feel like a cemetery, or what I imagine from cemeteries. It was loud, there were people walking around looking at random graves and it was just very casual. There was no grieving, no remembrance, no emotion. I think it was just that the cemeteries are so old. Most of the headstones, at least the ones that were legible were from the 1800’s. Nobody that is a live knew these people, and because of that these two cemeteries aren’t even cemeteries, they’re just historical landmarks.
I think that the experience if the cemeteries weren’t in a busy part of the city, they weren’t so old, it was night, or I knew somebody buried there. The quietness would have allowed for reflection, the night would be adding intensity. The nighttime factor for me seems pretty important. A lot of times people associate the dark with death, and just bad connotations in general. Which is why I believe that there is an added intensity for being in a setting like a cemetery at night. Knowing somebody buried there would have drawn me in more to the assignment, evoking a lot more reflection. I would look at somebody’s tombstone and read it and assume things, whereas for this I looked at a tombstone and saw a breaking rock.
This wasn’t a very deep experience for me. But it did teach me a couple of things. 1. Anything that is old enough can become a tourist spot. 2. If you want a good experience don’t go with two of your friends.
St. Pauls:

 Trinity:

Extra Credit 5: Six Feet Under

Six Feet Under
Character synopsis:
Nate Fisher : Eldest child, lives in Seattle, for most of his life tried to stay away from his family.
David Fisher: Middle child, dedicated to the family business, closet homosexual, and generally angry person.
Claire Fisher: Youngest child, in high school, rebellious and problem.
Ruth Fisher: Widow, has repressed feelings, has a hard time keeping the family together.
Keith Charles: David's gay lover, level headed, police officer.
Brenda: Nates' newlymet partner, witty, keeps Nate in check.


Episodes:
"Pilot." Six Feet Under. HBO: 03 Jun 2001. Television. 16 May 2011.


The owner of a funeral home dies, leaving behind his family of four. This episode introduces this central family consisting of sons Nate and David, widow Ruth, and daughter Claire. This episode consists of everybody finding out about, and reacting to their father/husbands death.


This episode shows how no two people grieve the same way. It displays that nobody is immune to the effects of death. The show is interesting because it incorporates humor, fantasy, and drama to show what this family is going through. It also takes this complex issue of how people who are around death all the time deal with it.


"The Will." Six Feet Under. HBO: 10 JUN 2001. Television. 17 May 2011.


The will of Nathaniel Fisher, Sr. appoints Nate and David co-owners of the Fisher and Sons funeral home. Ruth receives insurance compensation. Claire has a trust fund that will pay for college. At the same time as the Fisher family struggles with their internal issues, they also have to deal with somebody having a funeral at their home with no money to pay for it. 


This episode shows the aftershocks of death. Moving past the initial shock of the death, inheriting what's left of the will. It shows a lot of the pain people go through when death occurs, it even shows how it can tear families apart. It again uses humor and drama, and this time also incorporates outsides peoples struggles with death. 




"The Foot." Six Feet Under. HBO: 16 JUN 2001. Television. 17 May 2011.
Moving on past the initial trauma of Mr. Fisher dying, the show turns it's focus towards a new conflict. Because the owner just died, there has been an offer to buy the funeral home. After first deciding that this would be the best idea, Nate decides that they should keep it and run it as a family. A second conflict arises as they are taking care of Mr. Romano who got chopped up in a giant dough mixer, and they lose his foot.


All of the episodes use the same techniques to display what happens when dealing with death. Humor and Drama. What this episode does compared to the first to is it moves away from the death of Mr. Fisher, but still shows the side effects of the death. This episode also takes the viewer deeper into the deathcare world, as it discusses centralization for funeral homes, and how they aim to maximize profit. 


Show Analysis:
I like this show a lot. It combines the truth of the deathcare industry, with belivable grief. It is raw, funny, and speaks the truth.  From episode 1 of this show, you can see a lot of the real issues we've been talking about in class. David mentions numerous times, "this is a business." 


In episode 3, "The Foot.", when a large cooperation is trying to buy out this single, independent home, the whole basis is to maximize profit. It was like something right out of The American way of Death by Jessica Mitford. This show really brings to life some of the issues with the care of the dead in America. As a fictional series, I still think it can be used to show how greedy our system is. One of the things that isn't good about this show to show real-world issues is that it's so good. It challenges some of the dominant social practices appropriately but it's easily overlooked because of all the drama. You get the specific situation, not the big picture.


This show also captures the way people are broken down when their loved ones die. It tries to stick with the different ways people deal with grief and I think it shows it well. Overall I think the show captures death well at its best and its worst. 

Homework 55- Cumulative Project Part 2: Embalming

Embalming: What it is, its effects, and its alternatives.

“Old-fashioned equipment, poor or marginal ventilation, non-protective latex, timeworn procedures, careless attitudes, use of high index/high exposure formaldehydes in many forms, absurdities such as gasoline/chlorinated solvents/toxic sprays, petrochemical based clown makeups, chemical overdrive by necessitation of formaldehyde repair chemicals, disposal nightmares by massive amounts of chemicals and incompatibilities such as bleach, etc., absurdities such as kerosene for maggots and gasoline/hexane based dry washes, hideously appearing rock hard/dehydrated bodies that destroy the natural lifelike appearance and require painting up with greasepaint mortuary cosmetics – all combine to make the embalming process needlessly dangerous, of marginal value and ridiculous in the eyes of modern society.”

-James H. Bedino, Chemist/Director of Research, The Champion Company

What is embalming?

Embalming is the process of temporarily preserving corpses to make them presentable for display at funerals.

The process:

Embalming is generally known as a 5-step process. The first step is preparing the body, where the face is shaved, and a disinfectant is sprayed to clean the skin, eyes, and mouth.

The second step is putting the body into its final position. This involves setting the face in a way that looks good. They put eye caps underneath the eyelids because the eyeballs usually set in. Sometimes the eyelids are glued together.

The embalming fluid, which is usually formaldehyde mixed with water, is injected into the arteries, while blood drains from the heart and veins. At the end of this filling/draining process, everything is tied up and the incisions are sutured shut.

After the arterial embalming is completed, the mortician completes the cavity embalming. This involves using a trocar, or a sharp spear-like object to puncture all of the internal organs. The body is then drained of all the remaining fluids before a stronger, more concentrated embalming mix is used to fill the torso.

After this process is completed the body and the hair are again washed. Make-up is applied and the body is dressed for the viewings.

Embalming rates:

The cremation rate in the United States was 36.02% in 2008. That leads to around 60% of people who died in 2008 to be buried. The overwhelming majority of people who get buried are also embalmed. This means that more then half the people that die each year in the United States are embalmed.

Embalming Risks:

Because embalming doesn’t actually stop bodies from decomposing, they just slow down the decomposition temporarily; the chemicals are released into the earth. As mentioned earlier, the main chemical used in embalming, formaldehyde, is toxic. With over half the people that die being embalmed with this fluid, the earth is constantly being polluted.

Alternatives to Embalming:

While many people chose embalming because it provides a desirable way to present the body. It makes the dead look alive but asleep.  It is also a long and gruesome process with many negative effects. On top of that, it doesn’t even do what people expect it to.

What people don’t know is that they don’t know is that there are other options to temporarily preserve the body. The cheapest, least harmful method is refrigeration. Refrigerating the body has almost the same effect as embalming. It allows for them to apply make-up and make the body look good, while saving the chemicals and the dangers. A big issue is that funeral homes make a lot of money off of embalming, as it is even considered an art. It requires a lot of work and materials. With refrigeration, it requires almost no work, and no materials, but funeral homes still want to maximize profit (an overarching problem to deal with) so they charge the same amount for refrigeration.

This isn’t fair because refrigeration is a viable, cheaper, healthier, and effective alternative. But even if it cost the same amount, it is still the better choice because it doesn’t harm the environment.

Final Statement:

Embalming is a commonly used process that is not only unnecessary, but also unhealthy. There are alternatives that are readily available and should be taken advantage of.

Works Cited:

Cremation Association of North America, August 2009 Report: "2007 Statistics and Projections to the Year 2025: 2008 Preliminary Data."

Bedino, James. "JUSTIFYING EMBALMING AND APOLOGIZING FOR FORMALDEHYDE: THE NEVER-ENDING DISINFECTION, PRESERVATION, RESTORATlON DEBATE IN THE FUNERAL INDUSTRY. ." N.p., 2009. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.themodernembalmer.com/pdfs/20080829justifyembalm.pdf>.

"The 5 Steps Of Embalming." Listverse. N.p., 08 Nov 2007. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://listverse.com/2007/11/08/the-5-stages-of-embalming/>.

"The Embalming Process." American Society of Embalmers. American Society of Embalmers, 2005. Web. 16 May 2011. < http://www.amsocembalmers.org/docs/embalming-process.pdf>

Homework 55- Cumulative Project Part 1: Failure

The original project plan that Chris, Jasper, Lucas, and I had was to go and observe a funeral and write about it. Write about the feelings that were being shown, what people were wearing, what interactions were going on. We called the funeral home that Chris had a connection at, and they said there was a public wake from 3-4 on Saturday. Granted I showed up late, Chris, Jasper, and Lucas were sitting in the waiting room, untended to.
The lighting was dim, the floor was black, and the walls were dark. In the lobby there was a waterfall. Everybody that came in and out was wearing black. It seemed like once you stepped into the funeral home you have to be sad, or at least fake it.
Even though we were told two days earlier that it’d be okay to observe what was going on inside the home, we were told by the receptionist that we’d have to talk to the funeral director. Then near 4pm, almost an hour since the first of our group arrived, the funeral director came into the waiting room to address us. While he was very nice about telling us that basically we were too late and had to leave, well he told us that it was too late and we had to leave. He said the service was starting, which is more private then the viewing. Too bad that the whole time we were waiting for him was the viewing time.
I think this is part of the dominant practices we live by though. It’s all behind closed doors. In other cultures it isn’t like this. Anybody can come to a Ghanaian funeral, and they have crazy, festive funerals. Our dominant culture has programmed us to think death as a more delicate topic than necessary. Not only were we lied to about being allowed in, the funeral director strategically kept us out of this persons’ funeral.
Even though I think that this was a failed attempt at exploring our dominant social practices, I also believe that it proved what I suspected true. That death is kept separate from the rest of the world. That when somebody dies, only a select few get to be involved. I’m not saying that everybody in the world should be invited to every funeral, but everybody dies so it’s not that big of a deal. I think that one of the reasons it is made into such a big deal is about the costs. With the average funeral costs nearing $10,000 I can understand why people make a big deal over funerals. Take away that cost and stress goes with it. Funerals become celebrations of life instead of reflections on death.


A video of our unsuccessful ordeal:

Homework 54- Independent Research B

As a baptized Christian, and deciding a lot of what the religion teaches is ridiculous, I thought it’d be interesting to see if what is taught about heaven is ridiculous to myself as well.  I read from the works of Luke, John, and Matthew. I also spoke to one of my neighbors who is a retired nun. I figured that she spent a large portion of her life devoted to the works of the bible, so she should have good insights on the topic.

Luke, John, and Matthew:


The works of all three are fairly understandable. What is written in these texts is more about how to get into heaven rather then what heaven is. I think this is actually pretty smart to do. It allows people to make assumptions, so even if heaven doesn’t exist or isn’t great, people will still attempt to get in.

     “For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.  Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them” (John, 3:30).

 My interpretation of this quote is that everybody must accept god, and god’s word, all the time. This goes against my previous learning. I learned when making my communion that if you continue to make penance that god will forgive you for your sins and you will still go to heaven.  Its one of the many contradictions I’ve found in the Christian religion.  It’s like saying you can do whatever you want (except not believe in god as stated above) and as long you say sorry it  doesn’t matter.

“One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body.  Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.

     Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” And they had nothing to say” (Luke, 14).

This may not directly correlate with what it takes to make it to heaven or not. It does show some of the values Christians believe necessary to have a successful afterlife. The story is that Jesus broke Sabbath to heal a man. Breaking Sabbath is a sin, and sins supposedly keep you from the gates of heaven. The second part of this quote is Jesus questioning the guests, questioning their logic. He was trying to make the point that you have to handle serious and important situations no matter what. If you can justify why you are going against the Dogma, it is okay. This is a strong idea because it provides leniency for those who have sinned, but had a good reason to sin. One of the moral values has become present is that others’ come first. Jesus healed this man, which was technically a sin, but him healing the man is more important. Putting other people before the religious restrictions is good because it allows a person to be a wholesome community member. What this doesn't show however, is if you should put yourself before what christianity asks you to do. Which is a greater issue, but I haven't seen much proof for it. 

“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew, 6:15).

I don’t like this idea because there are some things that are unforgivable. If somebody murders my mom, I’m supposed to forgive the murderer? Or else I wont be forgiven for anything? That seems ridiculous to follow. Not everything can be forgiven.

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven” (Matthew, 6:1).

I understand where he is coming from, with the idea that you should do good to do good, not for anybody’s approval (except for god). But the way that it is written makes this idea seem extreme. It says you must not let ANYBODY see. It would be better to say, “Do not flaunt your good deeds to others.” The idea behind this you can let people notice, show not tell.

Overall, the readings do not specify what happens in heaven, but that if you do not follow the teachings of god you will face his wrath. Again his wrath is not specified, but I can imagine it isn’t pleasant. Probably something along the lines of being trapped in a room with four walls, floor, and ceiling made of cacti. These passages do tell you how to get into heaven. Believe gods word, try to sin as little as possible, put others first, and when you do sin, ask for forgiveness. Most of it is understandable, but there are some ridiculous parts, like the rest of the bible. But again I didn’t learn what the afterlife actually IS, just that there is one, and it can either be good or bad. 

The Interview:

After not making much progress from the readings I did, I thought I could find out some better information from my neighbor, Mrs. P., a retired nun.  I asked her about what it means to go to heaven and what heaven means. She answered saying that to go to heaven is god’s way of rewarding you. When it came to answering the question about what heaven is, she seemed unsure of herself. “Nobody can really define heaven. Only god knows what heaven really is.” I also asked her about her ideas on the afterlife, and she said that it is eternal, and can be either be a joyful, gleeful afterlife, or a painful afterlife. 

Based on this interview, I can only assume that nobody really knows what heaven is. And if nobody really knows what heaven is, it makes me wonder why people spend their whole lives trying to get there. Why do people try so hard for something that might not be all that great? Or might not exist at all? People just get these pictures from outside sources and assume that's what's true. Even if heaven is a rundown tenement building with overpriced rent.

Homework 53- COTD Independent Research A.

Dance, Laugh, Drink. Save the Date: It’s a Ghanaian Funeral.
By SAM DOLNICK
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/12/nyregion/12funerals.html?_r=1&ref=deathanddying
Précis:
Ghanaian funerals are live and vibrant, much different then the traditional funerals that are commonly seen in the US. Some people who attend don’t even know the person that has died, nevertheless the family. These funerals request for donations to the family throwing them, and many times the funeral-throwers make money. Also unlike the funerals Americans are used to, the body is commonly not present at the funeral, as these funerals can take months to plan. It truly is a celebration of the person’s life. 


Cyberspace When You’re Dead
By Rob Walker
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/magazine/09Immortality-t.html?pagewanted=1&ref=deathanddying
Précis:
When a person dies, there are many things they leave behind. In this new day in age where we have become obsessive over expressing ourselves via Internet, we leave behind twitters and facebooks, emails and blogs. Now we have to learn what to do with these virtual profiles after we pass on. Some people, who are knowingly towards the end, leave final posts, pictures, ect. for everyone to see. But others, who pass on unexpectedly, have different endings virtually as well. If nobody knows their password, nobody can access their virtual life, so it is left as it was, not to be updated or deleted. There are some programs that can terminate these profiles after you die, and there have been attempts to create cyber-heaven. There is no standard solution to what happens to your virtual self after your real self dies, different people have different answers but the virtual heaven doesn’t exist. Yet.


Analysis:
Both of these articles related to the sociology and history, or the lack of it, of the care of the death. But in different ways. The first Article, about Ghanaian funerals talks about how while our traditional funerals are slow and downbeat, while theirs are truly celebrations of a persons life. I like the way that these funerals are conducted because it isn't about the body, it isn't about costs of caring for the dead person. It is about celebrating the persons life by really celebrating. Partying, dancing and remembering. It isn't like this is a new wave of funerals in this culture either. This is their historical, traditional type of funeral. It just has been updated to meet the present social standards.
The second article was about a new type of the care of the dead. The care of your online profile. It's something that I've thought about and hasn't been answered. This article showed how there are a number of solutions, but no standard. There isn't enough history with it to have a real traditional solution. I think the idea of a "cyber heaven" is cool because then anybody can look back at your life, at least virtually. But at the same time you have to chose what would go in because it could also reveal your personal life that you don't want everybody to know. It can go both ways. It's just interesting that as our technology improves there's more things to worry about when we die.


Interview-
For this research I interviewed Barbra Kinard, administrative assistant at Danjolell memorial homes. The questions I asked were about the most difficult times working in a funeral home and how people go about planning their own funeral if they have nobody to plan it for them.
Her answers were short and to the point, but I think it revealed a lot about how she felt as a person on the inside of this industry.
To answer the question concerning people organizing their own funerals, she explained that it’s actually very common for people to plan their own funeral. That the person who is dying knows what they want more then anybody else, She also explained that people don’t want to give their families any more stress then necessary.
Analysis:
This answer almost seemingly went against the evil funeral home ways I had learned about in Jessica Mitford’s book The American Way of Death, Revisted. The reasoning behind this statement is that in the book, it teaches how funeral directors and other people in the business of death take advantage of the grieving families. If somebody is making their own arrangements they most likely have a clear understanding about what they want. Which makes it a lot harder to manipulate the customer into spending more money. Which led me to think: Why would a funeral home allow this to happen if they make less money off it. I came to two conclusive answers. This first is based off logic, and it is that there is a significant demand for pre-planned funerals, allowing the home to get more business. Also as I explored the Danjolell’s website I found that the funerals can be planned not necessarily paid for until a later point in time. Which would allow for price manipulation.


Other further questions:
Do families ever change the plan of the person who has died?
Is the average costs of pre-planned funerals less then those that are less organized and planned out?


The second question, was asking what the most difficult part of working in the funeral industry is. Her response seemed typical and cliché saying that the hardest part of working in the funeral industry is when she has to work with families of young people that have died. Her reason being that she is a mother and it makes her upset.


Analysis:
While I do not doubt that working with families of the young that have died isn’t difficult, I don’t know how sincere this answer was. It just seems like a very cliché and off the top of the head. I feel like it just seems like a nice thing to say. If you think about it, everybody is the child of somebody, and anybody that has had a child is a mother. My great uncle has buried three of his children already. The way it seems, anytime a parent is burying their kid there is more of an emotional effect. At the same time I realize that with younger people there is always a stronger emotional effect: “They had their whole life ahead of them.” I just feel that she most likely doesn’t know any of these families so it isn’t like she would be affected that much. That there are a lot of hard things in that industry to deal with, and while that may be one, I don’t know if I can agree that this is definitely the hardest.
I feel like that the hardest thing she has to do is trick or manipulate grieving families into giving the home more money then necessary.


Further Questions:
Do you treat these families differently because of the heightened emotional factors?
How would you handle the care of your child if anything happened?

Homework 52- COTD Book Part 3.

The American Way Of Death Revisited- Jessica Mitford.
Précis:
The proceeds of embalming has evolved since it was created in ancient Egypt. When the Egyptians embalmed, it was to keep the body preserved for mummification. Now when we talk about embalming it isn't about preservation, it's about aesthetics. Funeral directors prefer somebody to be enbalmed because it's an easy way to make money. What is done with embalming can be dome just as well with refrigeration. But don't tell a funeral director that, he'll have an extended list about why embalment is necessary.
Funeral directors, morticians, cemetery owners, and every other person in the business of death trys to take advantage of customers. Whether it's lying to them about laws or creating drawn out sales plans, they are worrying about themselves, NOT THE CUSTOMER. Over time it is sad we haven't seen a change in these methods, in this business. Sometimes the people in the business of death get away with this, other times they get a bad rep, and deservingly so. But nobody trys to change it. And that is why I wrote this book. To educate and raise the awareness of the general public. One day I hope that people stand up for themselves and demand change. But until then, try not to get tricked.
Quotes:
"His last words- "Bring me my porridge" - while not earth-shattering, have at least the merit of being historically accurate" (Mitford, 153).

(Stolen from Martyna, but it's a great quote) "A cartoon depicts a group of sorrowing goldfish gathered round a lavatory bowl in which one of their number floats belly-up. The caption: "He always wanted an open casket'" (Mitford, 220).

Analysis:
I connected this book to the food unit last post, saying that big issue is individuals (companies) being greedy and trying to maximize profit at the cost of the general public. For this post I'll connect it to the birth unit.
The care of the dead is unlike the birth unit because in the birth unit there was alternatives. There are midwives who provide equal care at a lower price, using the correct techniques. But for the dead there is no midwife. Most of the time if you try to follow any conventional standards you're going to be sucked in to this over priced world. I haven't heard of a logical way to avoid any of this yet. It's sad, but so true. We have one death system, and even though it isn't logical to use this system, we have to.
For overall analysis of this section I think it was just showing how embalming is another process that makes the American death system and then a wrap up for the book. I could have predicted her talking about embalming and it's non-uses because A. We talked about it in class, reading a short exerpt. B. It fits in, she went to talk about how we have a bunch of overpriced processes with little use. I don't understand it though, funeral homes can still make money of refrigeration and not go through the grueling process of embalment. It is from what I've read, extremely difficult. If I were a funeral director I'd encourage the refrigeration of the body, at half the cost of embalment. It would still be making money at less work for everyone involved.
Overall this was a good book, Mitford has a good, sarcastic sense of humor. It did remind me of Born In the USA by Marsden Wagner. It had similar writing styles and approaches to topics.

Homework 51- Second Third Of COTD Book

The American Way of Death, Revisited - Jessica Mitford


Precis:
As the American death business grows due to the population growth, and, well the fact that people never stop dying, more people are getting involved. More people getting involved translates to more people attempting to maximize profit. Before it was with embalming, now with cremation. The process of cremation is cheaper but it still isn't cheap. With new types of selling points, those same people who tried to sell you that expensive casket, will try just as hard to sell you that new, expensive urn. Oh, and a place to keep your new urn too. But don't worry, if you want to be buried there are still people after you.  People buying up large pieces of land and clearing everything. Once they have one big empty lot, they can selling little bits of it at a time, and then in those bits, they can dig little holes, and in those little holes goes the dead bodies.   Good thing this new branch of the real estate market is all tax free!
Notable Quotes:
-"Several siblings each bought individual urns to hold a portion of mom's ashes: "There was something of a power struggle to see who would purchase the nicest urn." (Mitford, 116)
-"A major reason for the existence of most professional organizations is the maintenance of standards of ethical practice among its members, and the discipline of members who deviate from these standards. Here the NFDA [national funeral directors association] is in some difficulty, because the practices that have led to the severest public criticism-tricky selling methods and overcharging-are nowhere condemned in the official policy pronouncements."
(Mitford, 160)
-"Minimum services of the funeral director and staff. This fee for put basic services and overhead will be added to the total cost of the funeral arrangements you have decided upon. (Mitford, 198)
Analysis:
While what cemetery owners and funeral directors are wrong, it is becoming to make more and more sense to me. Everybody had to eat. They see this growing market with easy profits, they get involved. Now I'm not saying morally what they're doing is right, but it is a good business decision. You see the opportunity to achieve, you take that opportunity. That's why people say America is so special, because there are "opportunities". So when one is presented in front of you, why not take it? It seems like a horrible thing to do, but then again these people in the business of death have no personal connection with the person that died, or the family paying them. The only personal connection they make is with the money.
I think from what I've learned from this book so far is that this unit is more like the food unit. It reminds me of the food unit because it talks about individual gain for profit. The funeral homes are like the farms where it was just cows packed into a pen. The funeral directors and cemetery owners don't really care how the body is treated as long they're making maximum profit at minimal cost to themselves. In this part of the book it really goes in depth on this idea, as the cremation rate rises, so does the prices and designs of urns.

Homework 49- COTD Spring Break Comments

For amber,
Amber,
I like how you started your post with that overall summary, it made the post easier to read, and lets the reader know what's going on.
It was impressive that you used quotes in this post, even though they weren't asked for. It made this post have a more authentic feel to it. 
You're structure was pretty easy to follow: summary, interview 1, interview 2, interview 3, analysis paragraphs. 
It was interesting to find out about the Islamic traditions around death after learning about the Jewish traditions from sams post. 
One suggestion I'd make is to keep it short and sweet. Keep only the most important information. 
For Sam,
I liked the way this post was structured, and the quotes you chose had a lot of meaning. I think you used the information that your parents provided you to create a viable hypothesis. I agree with what you said by it not being the body that matters, it being the "soul", however people think of that. I'm glad you mentioned religion deciding how someone gets cared for because from my experiences that came up a lot.
A suggestion about the way you structured this post would be to switch the order in which you included the interviews because you put the more interesting information at the beginning which took away from the post. Save the best for last. Also in the middle of the post your wording started to get confusing. I think you did a good job of making something out of the little information you got from your parents. I think it's always hard to draw conclusions from little bits of information and you did it well.
For Martyna,
Anybody that reads this can tell you definitely put work into this blog. You incorporated relevant statistics to supplement your parents opinions which  gave it context and made it more interesting to read. 
 It was also interesting to read because as you said, your parents aren't from America. The traditions around death aren't the same everywhere in the world, and that's displayed in this post when your mom said the tradition is to kiss the hand of the deceased. In America I think many people would find this weird because the dead are kept separate. 
 Also it was interesting to see that some of the traditions are the same between cultures, mostly because they are religion based. 
 I think that this deserves a 10 regardless, but one thing that you could do to improve is to make sure your sentences coherently match up. At the beginning it happened once with going from fearing death to a polish tradition. Other then that, this post was great. 
-----------------------------------------------------
From t/w team:
Kevin,
You talked to three peers about the care of the dead and summarized their answers.
Danny had a slightly different opinion to what we usually come across. To me, it seems almost wrong to say it doesn't matter what happens to a dead person's body. His opinion was very interesting and could be quite controversial.
I have to disagree with your thought in the last paragraph; I think the body physically is quite important- you might get a different experience when standing over a grave knowing that you are actually close to the body of the person (or its ashes/remains), than when you are simply looking at a gravestone.
My suggestion would be to, at least briefly, plan what questions you are going to ask, or maybe think out in which direction you would like to steer your discussion when interviewing.
Overall, you included some good thoughts and quotes.
Thanks for your interviews,
Martyna


Sam:
To start, I think that you had some great ideas. I really like the ideas that you present about funerals being about celebrating a person's life and that it isn't always necessary to spend an absurd amount of money on someone's funeral. I also agree with you that having a funeral for them so they have a proper start to their afterlife is not a sufficient reason for an extravagant funeral. I think that if you expanded on these ideas then you would have a really great blog post. Why do you disagree with Mike, and why did his ideas make you mad? What influences do your religious beliefs play in your opinions? I think that if you went in depth in the "My Thoughts" section, then maybe we (the readers) would understand where your stronger opinions were coming from. Other then that though I think you had some great ideas. Good job.


Amber:
Kevin,
You had a good mix of interviewees. Your interviews helped me prove my point about religion and beliefs and what affect they have on how one approaches care of the dead. I personally did not agree with everything that was said. When Danny said: “The person is dead so they won’t know how they’re body was treated.” I seemed to disagree, I believe that the way a body is treated has a lot to do with their afterlife. It should be treated with care and respect and have a proper disposal which would be a burial (this is my own opinion based on my faith). I am not saying that one should spend 10,000 dollars on an individuals funeral but I think it’s the thought that counts. You wouldn’t want to do physical damage to the body such as kicking it or jumping up and down on it; it just wouldn’t seem right. That is why I disagree with Danny when he stated that the dead person won’t be have any effect on how their body is treated afterwards. I think this had a lot to do with him being an atheist; since he doesn’t have certain beliefs he doesn’t really have anything to believe in instead of making everything up as he goes along in life. Thanks for sharing your interviews and your thoughts.
Amber M.

From Mentor, Leon (Dad):
In all your posts you have similar writing styles and structures. Sometimes it works well for you, but I don't think that this is one of those times. This Homework was very choppy. You did not let the post flow well as you do sometimes. Next time work to simplify and smooth things out.
The best insight that you had in this post was where you discussed how the care of the dead should be to honor their life, and not be so focused on the body itself. I agree with this, because the fact is that the person is dead, and that's that. The person isn't going to whine whether they are cremated or buried. 
This was not one of your better posts though. Take your time while writing. Edit, re-read, make your posts flow. 
From Jose, (Hunter College student)
The content of this post could have been stronger, the analysis, or "my thoughts" section was lacking that deep insight that could have made it from good to great. It was also hard to follow and keep up with. Like your Dad said above, simplify. It will make it sound much better.
I think that the best insight from this post was the connection you made between religion and caring for the dead. I know every religion, as well as every culture has a different way of caring for the dead. It's good that you recognize that, and now you should build of it to strengthen ideas and create deep insights. This one was good, but you should use it to make your next one great.