Berawan Culture Analysis

What to do with a Corpse: An Analyses of Cultural Funerary Practices and Their Applications in Amazonian, Borneo and Western Societies It is a universal constant that all people die. However, the question of what to do with the body of the deceased is less directly answered. Funerary rituals are shaped by culture, and this “death culture” varies greatly in terms of practice, significance, and meaning, to those who exercise them. This idea of unique variation can be prominently seen in the death customs of the Wari’ people, the Berawan people, and in Western culture, as analyzed through the works of Conklin, Metcalf, and Lock. It is through the study of these three different groups, that the diversity of culture is revealed to an anthropologist, …show more content…
Additionally, instead of one culturally specific system, there are many appropriate methods for funerals, and two of these central aspects are “embalming,” and “organ transplant.” Based on the words of Metcalf, embalming is a funerary process in which a corpse is maintained through synthetic devices. To embalm, the organs and fluids of the corpse are removed and replaced by preservers such as waxes and formaldehyde. The body is reconstructed through stitching and stuffing, with dye infused into the veins to replicate a lifelike pigmentation. This imitation of life is key in the cultural acceptance of embalming, as those close to the deceased do not want to see them in a state of decay, since it can perpetuate grief. Through the preservation of the body, the existence of the deceased is also sustained. A similar form of thought is equally conveyed by organ transplants, however, the idea of preservation is centered on the bodies of the living that are supported. As outlined by Lock, in an organ transplant, the corpse is removed the moment death is confirmed by an extended lack of brain activity, where it is then sterilized, and the healthy organs carefully, and surgically removed by a specialist transplant team. After their removal, the organs are placed on ice, in storage, to ensure their later functionality. Organ transplants are significant to Western culture, because they reveal beliefs of the connection of mind - or spirit, to the body. Where the Wari and Berawan believe that the spirit and body of a person are intertwined, in Western philosophy, they are thought of as distinctly separate entities; at the moment of death, the body becomes an empty shell. As such, Western practices are morally justified, and differ vastly from other aspects of the