On Dying Well: Narrative Remedies for Social Wounds
Ashley Yukihiro, MA, PhD Student, Saint Louis University
What does it mean to die well? In a society wrought with questions of existence and being, meditations on death and dying are often pushed off until one comes face to face with their end. Many philosophers, theologians, bioethicists, and medical practitioners have wrestled with this question of dying well differently. Some theologians and philosophers have rationalized death in certain ways. On the one hand, some view death is a temporal limit that is not relevant for the time spent alive, and as a universal reality for all living things becomes an equalizing contingent fact of existence. On the other hand, some prescribe a theodicy that warrants life after death, entailing that the end is only a portion of the story for one’s continued existence. However, as many bioethicists and medical practitioners have come to realize, these abstract rationalizations fall flat in the wake of needing to practically care for the needs of a dying patient. A more practical view is needed to approach and address issues of care of dying patients.
In this paper, I will present two different conceptions of death and dying, one being a critical theory approach and another being a theological approach to death and dying. In discussing the similarities and differences between the two views, I will argue for an improved conception of dying well and deduce clinical applications for practice. First, I will do this by presenting Theodor Adorno’s critical theory on death and contrasting his theory with Stanley Hauerwas’ theology of death and dying. Second, I will critique the views of death presented earlier and I will demonstrate how Adorno and Hauerwas overlap to point to the need to move past from the theoretical idea of personhood, which is grounded in a notion of utility instead of worth. Lastly, considering this revised theory of death and personhood, I will offer some practical approaches to care for individuals at the end of life, particularly those with memory loss such as dementia.
In this paper, I will present two different conceptions of death and dying, one being a critical theory approach and another being a theological approach to death and dying. In discussing the similarities and differences between the two views, I will argue for an improved conception of dying well and deduce clinical applications for practice. First, I will do this by presenting Theodor Adorno’s critical theory on death and contrasting his theory with Stanley Hauerwas’ theology of death and dying. Second, I will critique the views of death presented earlier and I will demonstrate how Adorno and Hauerwas overlap to point to the need to move past from the theoretical idea of personhood, which is grounded in a notion of utility instead of worth. Lastly, considering this revised theory of death and personhood, I will offer some practical approaches to care for individuals at the end of life, particularly those with memory loss such as dementia.