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the life of a mortician
the life of a mortician
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The Profit in Death
We all know that living is an expensive experience. You have to pay taxes, pay for food, and pay for shelter. The counterpart of living, however, can also be quite expensive. In fact, Death is one of the most profitable events in life generating about 15 billion dollars a year (Qtd. In Crawford). With profit however, comes greed and the Mortuary business has it’s fair share of corruption. Although a profit is necessary to maintain a business the extent to which some morticians go to maximize their profits is disgusting. While laws that Morticians have to follow a code of ethics exist their lack of reinforcement renders them useless. That being said, these issues need to be addressed and solved. The business of death overall
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The business of disposing of the deceased hasn’t always been a very established one. Many times throughout history people have taken advantage of people’s grief when a loved one has died and this was done in many ways. Some people would simply claim they buried their loved ones when in reality they dumped their bodies off elsewhere. Others would claim that they are caring for their loved ones dead body in a funeral home when in reality they are neglecting the body and taking your money. Luckily, in modern times we don’t really have these issues well not as much as we use to anyway. Now, instead, we have different problems, the main one being that Morticians will typically offer the most expensive options available for their services before any other ones. This often used tactic is in clear violation of the Federal Trade Commission’s rule which states that funeral homes much show a price listing of caskets and other services (smallbusiness). These Morticians see that this person is in significant grief over the death of their loved one and will take advantage …show more content…
In the past 4 decades the cost of a funeral service has risen 1,328% (Boring) and that’s not just because Morticians wanted to out of pure greed. One must take into account that modern morticians are much more of a business than before. Prior to 1970 the majority of funeral homes were independently owned, and family run. Today about 14% of funeral homes are run by a publically traded corporation (Boring) which means there’s a lot more capital involved in these businesses now. The homes are built better and by professionals rather than by individuals with some tools, the home’s are much more sanitary since there’s more than likely no one living in these funeral homes unlike before, and the quality of the products these services are proving is much higher than before. That being said, the industrialization of the Mortuary business is only responsible for a small fraction of the inflated costs of funeral services. According to Perianne Boring of Forbes the reason for why the funerals, specifically caskets are so inflated in price is because ‘Funeral service providers can set their own price for caskets, but their prices have to be consistent from person to person, even if that casket is 200% more expensive than the funeral home down the street”. As stated by Boring, Morticians can charge whatever they want for caskets so long they be consistent from customer to customer which is fair, however, still unethical
Since each funeral home is for the majority independent, the “leader” is either the owner or the manager. The position is achieved th...
That being said, the industrialization of the Mortuary business is only responsible for a tiny fraction of the inflated costs of funeral services. According to Perianne Boring of Forbes the reason for why the funerals, specifically caskets are so inflated in price is ‘Funeral service providers can set their own price for caskets, but their prices must remain consistent from person to person, even if that casket is 200% more expensive than the funeral home down the street”. As stated by Boring, Morticians can charge whatever they want for caskets so long as they are consistent from customer to customer which is fair, however, still unethical given
... pricing organs like vultures, holding a great deal of disrespect to both the deceased as well as their families. In addition, the author fails to remain neutral when discussing the issue, and exaggerates in blaming the government, solely and entirely.
The other way the families tried to maintain the Good Death was through embalming. “Embalming offered families a way to combat at least some the threats the war posed to the principles of the Good Death (Faust 93).” The undertakers during the Civil War took advantage of the grieving families in search of the Good Death for their soldiers. Not every family received a letter, not every family knew when or where their soldier died, and not every family had comfort that their soldier received the Good Death. Families then took the initiative into their own hands, and they went to search for their fallen soldiers. Undertakers would travel through battle ground and embalm any bodies that they could, so that families could bring their soldiers home
Holloway dug into the history of African American death through a series of interviews, archival research, and analyses of literature, film, movies, theater, and music. Through it, Holloway showed how the vulnerability of African Americans to untimely death is inextricably linked to how black culture represents itself and is represented. In dealing with grief and loss, African American researchers have primarily focused on the “death-care” industry—black funeral homes and morticians, the history of the profession, and its practices. Holloway took a stronger and more active approach by researching all facets of the burial business: emergency room physicians, hospital chaplains, hospice administrators, embalming chemical salesmen, casket makers, funeral directors, and grieving relatives.
Funeral consolidators such as Loewen group can put a great deal of pressure on suppliers to reduce prices.
Imagine yourself as a mortician, certified as an embalmer, retort operator, funeral director, and a funeral cosmetologist. You get a call late at night, there’s been a terrible accident and someone has died. You arrive at the hospital and are directed to a small room where the body of the deceased is being held. There’s blood all over the sheets as the doctor and coronary assistant zip up the body bag and inform you the body was badly mangled in a car accident, which is going to make reconstructing the deceased very difficult. Your assistant puts the body on the stretcher and loads it into the hearse while you talk to the wife of the deceased man. She tells you they plan to have a funeral so you give her your card and a reassuring word before leaving the hospital and driving back to the funeral home. Now your job begins, not only will you have to reconstruct this man’s disfigured body, but you must meet with the family, discuss funeral arrangements, and deal with the family’s emotional trauma that comes with losing a loved one. Although working in the funeral business can be emotionally draining, it’s a satisfying feeling to see mourning families able to say goodbye to their loved ones. Despite the fact that working so closely with the deceased can be chilling, Mortuary science can be a thrilling field to work in.
Humans are mistified by the unanswered questions about life after death. People crave immortality, yet everyone dies. Cemeteries memorialize death, making humans consider their mortality. Burial grounds serve as sacred places for people to mourn loved ones. In a constantly changing world, cemeteries provide a picture of the past, demonstrating cultural and religious views of death. The spatial arrangement of graves and headstones displays prejudices relating to socioeconomic class, gender, and race. The Lewisburg Cemetery presents an incite into the cultural relations and socioeconomic class dimensions in Union County since the Civil War.
Ward, PR. 1997. “Health Care Rationing: Can We Afford to Ignore Euthanasia?” Health Services Management Research: 10 (32-41)
According to (Wilson et al., 2012) the United States is “the world's biggest trade of products from human tissue for trade or sale, which is oblivious to the proper authorities who act dumbfounded about the knowledge of quantities of tissue imported, where it comes from, or the mysterious travel destination. In America, there is a new kind of trade on the market, more valuable than money, greed, exploiting human tissue. The cultivation of human tissue in manufacturing companies from around the world is a booming industry. These companies profit from the high demand of human tissue from deceased individuals from morgues, hospitals, and the most cut-throat business of all funeral homes. The investigation report revealed cases of funeral homes removing human tissue, and body parts without the proper consent from the family. The underworld of funeral homes exploits the deceased by taking advantage of the families and the dead for monetary gain.
According to the textbook, memorial services are becoming increasingly popular in many Protestant churches. This coincides with my family’s faith; we belong to a local Presbyterian church. The memorial will take place at The West Metro Chapel, part of the cremation package through Newcomer Funeral Homes and Crematory. This will reduce the costs significantly, consolidating the facility rental fee to only $675. Considering their will be no open casket or closed casket display the cremation will take place shortly after death, making the date of the service more flexible ensuring everyone who wants to attend the service can make it. Cremating the body will also be universally ideal for any condition the body is in from the cause of
While the end of life experience is universal, the behaviors associated with expressing grief are very much culturally bound. Death and grief being normal life events, all cultures have developed ways to cope with death in a respectful manner, and interfering with these practices can disrupt people’s ability to cope during the grieving
The subject of death and dying can cause many controversies for health care providers. Not only can it cause legal issues for them, but it also brings about many ethical issues as well. Nearly every health care professional has experienced a situation dealing with death or dying. This tends to be a tough topic for many people, so health care professionals should take caution when handling these matters. Healthcare professionals not only deal with patient issues but also those of the family. Some of the controversies of death and dying many include; stages of death and dying, quality of life issues, use of medications and advanced directives.
Death is something that causes fear in many peoples lives. People will typically try to avoid the conversation of death at all cost. The word itself tends to freak people out. The thought of death is far beyond any living person’s grasp. When people that are living think about the concept of death, their minds go to many different places. Death is a thing that causes pain in peoples lives, but can also be a blessing.
Locke, Mandy. “Study: End Death Cases, Save Money.” The News and Observer (2009). ProQuest. Web. 22 February 2010.