The unnaturalness of natural burials: dispossessing the dispossessed



Balonier, Anna-Katharina, Parsons, Elizabeth ORCID: 0000-0003-2034-3425 and Patterson, Anthony ORCID: 0000-0003-1508-9258
(2019) The unnaturalness of natural burials: dispossessing the dispossessed. Mortality: Promoting the interdisciplinary study of death and dying, 24 (2). pp. 212-230.

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Abstract

The rise of natural burials has not been without controversy. Traditionalist funeralists and a number of mourners struggle to reconcile new immaterial, anti-symbolic practices with those of old. Drawing from an extensive ethnographic study of German cemeteries of both traditional and natural denomination, and by employing a spatial theory approach, we consider the impact that the rise of natural burials has had on all parties in the funeral industry. In particular, we find that those who initially profess a keenness to mark the death of a loved one according to the new conventions of natural burials frequently become disillusioned with their choice. They are unwilling to fully embrace novel mourning practices which eradicate the material symbols that memorialise the deceased. In effect, natural burials dispossess the already dispossessed.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Natural burial, cemeteries, cemetery space, mourning practices, burial culture
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 14 Mar 2019 08:52
Last Modified: 25 Jun 2023 00:11
DOI: 10.1080/13576275.2019.1585786
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3034191