Sociology of Funeral Service - Exam #2

What are the three methods of disposition?

1. burial 2. entombment 3. cremation

5 characteristics of a subculture?

1. ethnic 2. religion 3. geography 4. age 5. language

what are three facts regarding socialization?

1. it is an ongoing process from birth to death. 2. it is both formal and informal. 3. it is never perfect.

what are 3 ways communities have announced deaths?

1. tolling of bells/town crier 2. death notice/obituary 3. electronic media

Extreme Unction

A term that means "last anointing." It once referred to the time that the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is received just before death. It is accompanied by a final reception of Holy Communion called Viaticum.

ceremony

An instrumental action dealing with death, that is also expressional and that may or may not be charged with symbolic content expressing, among other things, the attitudes of the participants and possible onlookers (passive participants) who may be regarded as co-beneficiaries. Any action performed during a rite which may or may not have symbolic meaning to the participants or observers of the action.

the term extreme unction is utilized by which two communities?

Episcopal and Anglican

the last rite "sacrament of the sick" is still practiced by what community?

Roman Catholic Community

Hashkava

a ceremony (prayer) for the "laying down" of deceased relatives of the Orthodox Jewish Community

norm

a group belief about how members should behave in a given context; an established standard of behavior maintained by a society.

ethnic group

a group that is set apart from others, primarily because of its natural origin or distinctive cultural patterns.

religious ritual

a practice required or expected of members of a faith

subculture

a segment of society that shares a distinctive pattern of mores, folkways, and values that differs from the pattern of the larger society.

culture

a set of knowledge, beliefs, attitudes and rules for behavior that are held commonly within a society.

symbols

anything to which socially created meaning is given; a gesture, object, or work that forms the basis of human communication.

what is an instrumental action dealing with death that is also expressional?

ceremony

mutability

change; the ways the rite are carried out are changing rapidly

cultural universals

common traits or patterns found in cultures of mankind

what is the difference between direct and indirect learning?

direct learning is formal socialization and indirect learning is informal socialization.

All cultures practice some method of ___________?

disposition

what are two variations within faith groups?

ethnic and cultural

law

formal norms enforced by the state.

what is direct learning?

formal socialization; the ability to learn facts, figures and information presented in a systematic fashion. ex/ parents instruct their children via direct learning.

Secular

individuals who do not hold to established religious practices

what is indirect learning?

informal socialization; the adaptation of culture based upon observable behaviors. few individuals are ever taught why their group behaves the way they do at a funeral. this information is usually "caught" not "taught".

what is the most recognized symbol in human interaction?

language

honoring the anniversary of someone's death is an example of ________________________?

memorialization

markers, donations, honoring the anniversary of the death, head panels, medallions, casket corner keepsakes, etc. are examples of?

memorialization

more

must happen; must behaviors; rules of behavior which are considered vital to the welfare of the group and accompanied by relatively severe sanctions; norms deemed highly necessary to the welfare of the community.

the expression, symbols, norms and meaning in rituals are ___________________________?

mutable

immutability

order/stability; the funeral rite is an immutable aspect of human existence

Ghusl

practical and ceremonial washing of the deceased Muslim

Christening a baby or a bris are examples of?

ritual

A division or smaller identifiable unit of culture, connected to that culture by common traits and having unique traits to itself is a definition of __________________.

subculture

material elements include _______________________.

tangible aspects of products and services offered; see and touch.

doctrine of atonement

the belief that the created is reunited with the creator at death

Taharah

the ceremonial washing of the deceased by the chevrah Kadisha before burial; serves as a ritual purification or cleansing of the body

Ethnocentrism

the emotional attitude that one's own race, nation, group, or culture is superior to all others.

diffusion

the process by which a cultural item spreads from group to group or society to society

globalization

the process of connecting countries and cultures in economic, political, and social activities.

values

the standards by which people define what is desirable or undesirable, good or bad, beautiful or ugly.

society

the structure of relationships within which culture is created and shared through regularized patterns of social interaction

thanatology

the study of death and dying

sociology

the study of social groups, their modes of organization, the processes which tend to maintain or change these forms, and the relationships between the groups

sociobiology

the systematic study of the relationship between the individual and society and the consequences of the difference

non-material elements include ________________________.

values, ideas, concepts and rules regarding acceptable and unacceptable behavior; intangible.

what is penance?

voluntary self-punishment inflicted as an outward expression of repentance for having done wrong

can ceremony be limited to non-religious events?

yes