PSY 3101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Black Comedy, Lung Cancer, Pharmacology
27 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
PSY3101A
Dr. Mary-Theresa Howard
1. Attitudes to Death
26.06.18
Attitudes - each society determines an attitude but when you grow up you change those attitudes through
socialization
Trust – we know we are going to die and that’s one thing we can trust
Blind trust – we just don’t know; push limits
oi.e building in liverpool – 10-12 story-high tourist attraction, pay to walk across glass walkway,
blind faith that it wont collapse and they will be safe w/o truly knowing
oi.e steel structure – walk across single file over the Grand Canyon trusting the structure will hold
Death is the cessation of life – no pulse, blood pressure, no brain activity
attitudes twd death & expression of these attitudes are a reflection of today’s society
reflected through language which has meaning attached to it and black humor
oOld wants to never die, they become needs; Old watchmakers never die, they just unwind; Old
wool coast never die, they just become mothballed; Walt Disney didn’t die, he’s in suspended
animation
Allows for discussion, momentary release from pain, an equalizer (treats the same), release and relief
(means for caregiver and patient to cope)
Good news – we can fix the problem if you take these pills, one daily; Bad news – here are four pills
Attitudes are Disseminate by
mass media – video games, movies; death is the ultimate loss
literature – 1000s of years to the Bible to now
AIDS quilt – developed in late 60s around the AIDS epidemic scare that aids was from a virus (sex) and many ppl
were dying; when they gave it a name it was epidemic in Africa
Quilt was developed, ppl used pictures, clothing, hewel of famous ppl who died
Quily got so big that they put it out on a field and get ppl to pay to see it which all the funds went to AIDS
research; 4-5 football fields long
Music; visual arts – sculptures depicting death; ancient dances have to do with rituals around death
formal death education
memorial after 9/11 – took 2 beacon lights where the towers were that shone up in the air
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
osalvaged it and put structure to move it and put a flag on it
Better health care has increased life; more women die from heart disease than anything else
oLung cancer kills more women, indication that more self-destructive behaviours become more
specific
Cure of AIDS – develop AIDS, 4 yrs later went to cocktail treatment, developed leukemia, doctors found
someone with same blood and donated bone marrow to help cure
Reasons for new patterns
Industrialization – 1800, ppl moved from rural communities into city, cities became overpopulated and
didn’t have sewers; change of lifestyle
Public health – didn’t have refrigeration, developed ice books to keep things; milk and meat would be
contaminated but still eaten
Preventative care – good care, vaccinations in babies (measles that destroy vision and heart)
Modern cure-orientated medicine – pharmacology, bridging techniques (artificial hearts), dialysis for
kidneys, bone marrow transplants
Nature of contemporary families – change patterns, more mobile, travelling to pick up things
Removed from the concept of death by:
Euphemisms – i.e I’m sorry your loved one passed on; passed on what?
oProtect self and them by not saying death/dying
isolation of the process of dying – when ppl feel sick to get a diagnosis they go to a hospital for tests,
dying are sent to the hospital and many ppl don’t want to visit them there
technologies – postponed death i.e heart transplant, keeping us alive
institutions – hospice care, long term care home
by the media – distancing us from death and from what we see, desensitize death
owe see ppl dying and tell ourselves we aren’t there yet so we are alright,
Factors that Influence Attitudes twd Death
the aging population – ppl are staying alive longer, healthier at an older age in Canada
prolongation of the process of dying – artificial body parts, technological advances, medication for cancer
nuclear age – or terrorism that can immediately kill the population
psychology of entitlement – rights of the dying to decide when, where, and how we die; euthanasia rights
oused to be second degree murder if doctors granted a patient’s wish to die
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Attitudes - each society determines an attitude but when you grow up you change those attitudes through socialization. Trust we know we are going to die and that"s one thing we can trust. Death is the cessation of life no pulse, blood pressure, no brain activity attitudes twd death & expression of these attitudes are a reflection of today"s society. Allows for discussion, momentary release from pain, an equalizer (treats the same), release and relief (means for caregiver and patient to cope) Good news we can fix the problem if you take these pills, one daily; bad news here are four pills. Mass media video games, movies; death is the ultimate loss. Literature 1000s of years to the bible to now. Aids quilt developed in late 60s around the aids epidemic scare that aids was from a virus (sex) and many ppl were dying; when they gave it a name it was epidemic in africa.
