| Dying peacefully: considering good death and bad death in Kwahu-Tafo, Ghana. | |
| | |
MedLine Citation:
|
PMID: 14732604 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
|
People in Kwahu-Tafo, a rural town in Southern Ghana, regard a peaceful death as a 'good death'. 'Peaceful' refers to the dying person having finished all business and made peace with others before his/her death and implies being at peace with his/her own death. It further refers to the manner of dying: not by violence, an accident or a fearsome disease, not by foul means and without much pain. A good and peaceful death comes 'naturally' after a long and well-spent life. Such a death preferably takes place at home, which is the epitome of peacefulness, surrounded by children and grandchildren. Finally, a good death is a death which is accepted by the relatives. This 'definition' of good death--'bad death' is its opposite--does not imply, however, that it is a fixed category. The quality of one's death is liable to social and political manoeuvre and, therefore, inherently ambiguous. The good death of a very old and successful person can be decried by the younger generation as the death of a witch who managed to live long at the expense of young people who died prematurely. The article is based on anthropological fieldwork carried out intermittently from 1971 to the present day. |
| | |
Authors:
|
Sjaak van der Geest |
Related Documents
:
|
16956864 - Methadone induction doses: are our current practices safe? 973624 - Diagnosis of death in comatose patients under resuscitation treatment: a critical revie... 12653184 - Distribution of monthly deaths, solar (sa) and geomagnetic (gma) activity: their interr... 4817164 - Death after taking medicaments. 11861344 - Spinal anesthesia in 62 premature, former-premature or young infants--technical aspects... 7870624 - Impact of induced abortions and statistical definitions on perinatal mortality figures. |
Publication Detail:
|
Type: Journal Article |
Journal Detail:
|
Title: Social science & medicine (1982) Volume: 58 ISSN: 0277-9536 ISO Abbreviation: Soc Sci Med Publication Date: 2004 Mar |
Date Detail:
|
Created Date: 2004-01-20 Completed Date: 2004-04-06 Revised Date: 2004-11-17 |
Medline Journal Info:
|
Nlm Unique ID: 8303205 Medline TA: Soc Sci Med Country: England |
Other Details:
|
Languages: eng Pagination: 899-911 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
|
Medical Anthropology Unit, University of Amsterdam, Oudezijds Achterburgwal 185, 1012 DK Amsterdam, Netherlands. s.vandergeest@uva.nl |
Export Citation:
|
APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
|
Anthropology, Cultural* Attitude to Death / ethnology* Bereavement* Christianity Developing Countries Family Characteristics Family Relations / ethnology* Ghana Humans Quality of Life Rural Population Social Environment* Sociology, Medical Thanatology Witchcraft |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: The good, the bad, and the unresolved death in Kaliai.
Next Document: Cultural scripts for a good death in Japan and the United States: similarities and differences.