Robert Kastenbaum - Böcker

In preparing this special issue of "Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying" - we choose to consider solidarity in a somewhat larger perspective than the other one usually adopted by a clear majority of social support studies. This perspective gives priority to microscopic, immediate, direct transactions between a focal individual - the one affected by the prospect of soon to come death and two classes of people: those included in the core of that person's personal network and the health care personnel treating and accompanying soon to die people, many of them already advanced into agony.

How do our ideas about dying influence the way we live? Life has often been envisioned as a journey, the river of time carrying us inexorably toward the unknown country - and in our day we increasingly turn to myth and magic, ritual and virtual reality, cloning and cryostasis in the hope of eluding the reality of the inevitable end. In this book a preeminent and eminently wise writer on death and dying proposes a new way of understanding our last transition. A fresh exploration of the final passage through life and perhaps through death, his work deftly interweaves historical and contemporary experiences and reflections to demonstrate that we are always on our way. Drawing on a remarkable range of observations - from psychology, anthropology, religion, biology, and personal experience - Robert Kastenbaum re-envisions life's forward-looking progress, from early-childhood bedtime rituals to the many small rehearsals we stage for our final separation.Along the way he illuminates such moments and ideas as becoming a 'corpsed person', going down to earth or up in flames, respecting or abusing (and eating) the dead, coping with 'too many dead', conceiving and achieving a 'good death', undertaking the journey of the dead, and learning to live through the scrimmage of daily life fully knowing that Eternity does not really come in a designer flask. Profound, insightful, often moving, this look at death as many cultures await it or approach it enriches our understanding of life as a never-ending passage.

This volume explores the moral, spiritual, and cultural terrain of aging through interdisciplinary scholarship and clinically based research. Aging has long been of interest to scholars and practitioners in a vast array of academic fields and professions. Thomas R. Cole, Ruth E. Ray, and Robert Kastenbaum have brought together leaders from a variety of academic realms to explore how aging is depicted in the modern era and the effect of these portrayals on individuals and society. The first section views aging and old age through the lenses of four disciplines: history, literature, religion, and philosophy. It probes the idea and effect of age in different places and times in history; discusses the concept as put forth in novels, memoirs, and literary studies and criticism; and raises important existential and spiritual questions about the meaning of growing old. The chapters in the second section demonstrate how interdisciplinary humanities can be applied to the study of aging through such thoughtful queries as: How do creativity and health relate in old age? What does "old" mean in an era of high-tech medicine, and what is our moral obligation to care for elderly persons?Why are friendships of special importance to older people? Section three uses semiotics, cultural analysis, and ideological critiques to identify key social issues related to aging, including the concept of "home," ageism and discrimination, and our understanding of aging in the era of globalization. The text closes with Robert Kastenbaum's poignant reflection on his own considerations of meaning and mortality as he journeyed back to health following heart surgery. This comprehensive guide works at the nexus of the humanities and health professions to provide the intellectual rationale, history, and a substantive overview of humanistic gerontology as it has emerged in the United States and Europe.

A critical gerontology requires more than a simple elaboration of existing humanistic scholarship on aging. This exceptional new work introduces a basis for genuine dialogue across humanistic, scientific, and professional disciplines. Among the topics addressed are industrial employment, retirement, life styles of older women, and biological research. From philosophical reflections on the "third age" to critical perspectives on institutional adaptations to an aging society, this book presents a wide range of provocative thought.

In preparing this special issue of "Omega: The Journal of Death and Dying" - we choose to consider solidarity in a somewhat larger perspective than the other one usually adopted by a clear majority of social support studies. This perspective gives priority to microscopic, immediate, direct transactions between a focal individual - the one affected by the prospect of soon to come death and two classes of people: those included in the core of that person's personal network and the health care personnel treating and accompanying soon to die people, many of them already advanced into agony.

Robert Kastenbaum, creator of the award-winning Encyclopedia of Death, has now collected and edited a source of reliable information on adult development that is accessible to the general reader, useable by professionals, and perfect for those who are simply browsing. This work is a fascinating and highly informative look at the milestones and ordeals, the key issues, and the concerns of American adults. The book expands our understanding of adulthood through 105 articles written by more than 70 contributing specialists from the fields of psychology, anthropology, religion, and sociology.

The 13th edition of Death, Society, and Human Experience provides a panoramic overview of the ways that we are touched by death and dying, both as individuals and as members of society. A landmark text in the field, the authors draw on contributions from the social and behavioral sciences as well as the humanities, including perspectives offered through history, philosophy, religion, literature, and the arts, to provide thorough coverage and understanding of topics associated with the end of life and death and dying. By approaching the subject from multiple angles, the authors explain the various ways that individual, cultural, and societal attitudes influence both how and when we die and how we live and deal with the knowledge of death and loss.Originally written by Robert Kastenbaum, a renowned scholar who developed one of the world’s first death education courses, Christopher M. Moreman, who has worked in the field of death studies for two decades, has updated this edition. In addition to infusing his close areas of focus, both in afterlife beliefs and experiences and how these might affect how people live their lives, he’s weaved in new coverage of current affairs, including:The impact of COVID-19 on experiences of death, bereavement, mourning, and moreExpanded legalization of physician-assisted dying in the United States and several countriesChanges in bereavement rituals and traditions stemming from technology use and social mediaWith additional content and classroom extensions available online, Death, Society, and Human Experience remains a thoughtful, exploratory, and impressively comprehensive overview for undergraduate and graduate courses in death, dying, and bereavement.

The 13th edition of Death, Society, and Human Experience provides a panoramic overview of the ways that we are touched by death and dying, both as individuals and as members of society. A landmark text in the field, the authors draw on contributions from the social and behavioral sciences as well as the humanities, including perspectives offered through history, philosophy, religion, literature, and the arts, to provide thorough coverage and understanding of topics associated with the end of life and death and dying. By approaching the subject from multiple angles, the authors explain the various ways that individual, cultural, and societal attitudes influence both how and when we die and how we live and deal with the knowledge of death and loss.Originally written by Robert Kastenbaum, a renowned scholar who developed one of the world’s first death education courses, Christopher M. Moreman, who has worked in the field of death studies for two decades, has updated this edition. In addition to infusing his close areas of focus, both in afterlife beliefs and experiences and how these might affect how people live their lives, he’s weaved in new coverage of current affairs, including:The impact of COVID-19 on experiences of death, bereavement, mourning, and moreExpanded legalization of physician-assisted dying in the United States and several countriesChanges in bereavement rituals and traditions stemming from technology use and social mediaWith additional content and classroom extensions available online, Death, Society, and Human Experience remains a thoughtful, exploratory, and impressively comprehensive overview for undergraduate and graduate courses in death, dying, and bereavement.

New to this third edition on the psychology of death are chapters on how we construct death; death in adolescence and adulthood, including suicide; physician assisted death, regret theory and denial; new approaches to the role of death anxiety; terror management theory; and edge theory.