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Social Science Death & Dying

Dying and Death in Canada, Second Edition

by (author) Herbert Northcott & Donna Wilson

Publisher
University of Toronto Press, Higher Education Division
Initial publish date
May 2008
Category
Death & Dying, Gerontology, Death, Grief, Bereavement
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781551118734
    Publish Date
    May 2008
    List Price
    $32.95
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781442602533
    Publish Date
    May 2008
    List Price
    $23.95

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Description

Death, like sexuality, is ever present but was rarely discussed before the 1960s. Since then there has been a growing discourse in the social sciences and helping professions about how to discuss the social construction of death. Dying and death in a society reflect the material and social conditions of that society. In turn, the society and culture in which we live influences what we think and do about dying and death. Similarly, dying is both a personal experience and a social role given shape and meaning by social practices and cultural definitions. The bereaved grieve and mourn in both personal and social terms, and the meaning assigned to dying and death is both personally and socially constructed.

This new edition of Dying and Death in Canada is designed for students who wish to learn about dying and death, for practitioners who work with the dying and the bereaved, for the dying and the bereaved themselves, and for the general public. Part I explores the causes of dying and death in Canada both historically and at present. Part II examines the collective constructions of?that is, the social and cultural response to?dying and death in Canada. Part III discusses dying and death from the personal points of view of the dying and the bereaved.

About the authors

Herbert C. Northcott teaches in the Sociology Department at the University of Alberta, Edmonton.

Herbert Northcott's profile page

Donna M. Wilson is a professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the University of Alberta.

Donna Wilson's profile page