Death And Bodies Book Review

Words: 203
Pages: 1

This book will be used as a discussion of theories about the symbolic meaning of death and bodies. It may also be used as a secondary source to write about how Americans have treated the remains of dead soldiers in history. The book uses published or unpublished medical histories, religious documents, personal diaries, letters and literary works to narrate Americans’ changing attitudes toward death from the death of George Washington to the 1880s when funeral service was industrialized. The author examines the cultural transformations that led to the nationally organized death profession, the practice of embalming, and the commodification of the remains. The book argues that from the early 19th century to the Civil War, the American society,