Case Studies
Case 1: During my visit to St. John 's Episcopal Cemetery in Valle Crucis, NC, I came across an interesting example of a laser etched image on Charles Dotson 's gravestone. Etched on Charles 's stone was an image of the USS San Diego along with the inscriptions "WWII," "Bronze Star Recipient," and "Brother Our Hero." Initially, I could figure that Charles was a member of the crew of the USS San Diego during his life, and that time was a defining factor of his personal identity. What I also figured was that his siblings were the ones that erected this stone, and that they had some say in what symbols were used. Following my visit to St. John 's, I wanted to learn more about how the USS San Diego figured into Charles 's life, and potentially why his siblings chose this symbol as a means of keeping their connection to their brother viable. From records, I was able to find that Charles was drafted into the Navy for World War II in 1943 when he was just 18. He was placed among the crew of the USS San …show more content…
In regards to symbolism, the scallop shell and arrow refer to directional signs that line the Santiago compostela trail, a pilgrimage hiking trail that runs from France to Spain. Darrell recounted the journey that he and Bryan ventured on while hiking the trail. Bryan loved to travel to “out of the way” places with his father, and this hiking trip was the last that they took together. For some weeks, they hiked the trail and followed markers of the “fleche de oro,” or “yellow arrow.” These markers, as recounted by Darrell, indicated to pilgrims the way to salvation. Specifically, pilgrims sought out the city of Santiago in northwestern Spain, which is the site of the remains of St. James the Apostle. Once a pilgrim reached the coast of Galicia near Santiago, they would acquire a large scallop shell and drink from a nearby source of
Case 1: During my visit to St. John 's Episcopal Cemetery in Valle Crucis, NC, I came across an interesting example of a laser etched image on Charles Dotson 's gravestone. Etched on Charles 's stone was an image of the USS San Diego along with the inscriptions "WWII," "Bronze Star Recipient," and "Brother Our Hero." Initially, I could figure that Charles was a member of the crew of the USS San Diego during his life, and that time was a defining factor of his personal identity. What I also figured was that his siblings were the ones that erected this stone, and that they had some say in what symbols were used. Following my visit to St. John 's, I wanted to learn more about how the USS San Diego figured into Charles 's life, and potentially why his siblings chose this symbol as a means of keeping their connection to their brother viable. From records, I was able to find that Charles was drafted into the Navy for World War II in 1943 when he was just 18. He was placed among the crew of the USS San …show more content…
In regards to symbolism, the scallop shell and arrow refer to directional signs that line the Santiago compostela trail, a pilgrimage hiking trail that runs from France to Spain. Darrell recounted the journey that he and Bryan ventured on while hiking the trail. Bryan loved to travel to “out of the way” places with his father, and this hiking trip was the last that they took together. For some weeks, they hiked the trail and followed markers of the “fleche de oro,” or “yellow arrow.” These markers, as recounted by Darrell, indicated to pilgrims the way to salvation. Specifically, pilgrims sought out the city of Santiago in northwestern Spain, which is the site of the remains of St. James the Apostle. Once a pilgrim reached the coast of Galicia near Santiago, they would acquire a large scallop shell and drink from a nearby source of