Philippe Aries And The Tame Death

Society has shifted from accepting and being familiar with death to denying it and banishing it from consciousness. Philippe Aries, a great contributor to the sociological study of death and dying and has explored the way that our experiences of death have changed over time and how these shifts have been influenced by social, political, and economic changes.
Upon examining the traditional death of the Middle Ages, Aries gave it the term the ‘Tame Death’. This is the first of Aries’ five attitudes to death which have categorised European society since the Mediaeval period. Aries’ work on the attitudes towards death looked at the history of the centrality of the beliefs and rituals about death (Kselman, 1987). The tame death is defined by harmony between the living and the dead (Whaley, 2012). One of the most significant aspects of this death is that it gave warning, especially since minor …show more content…
During this time, there was an increasing orientation towards the individual and emphasis shifted to your own death. Aries links this change to the increasing focus on individualism, which involves ideas about personal concept in life and after death. An emphasis on the Last Judgement develops, as opposed to more general ideas surrounding a Second coming or resurrection (Whaley, 2012). Before this period, there was the belief that the dead would be sent to heaven. The emphasis on individualisation meant that people started believing they were personally accountable for their deeds and focus on judging good and bad deeds increased, with the belief in the separation of the just and the damned. Preparation for death became more personalised as there was a shifting from collective commemorations to requiem masses for individuals, as well as a shift in focus from the death bed towards the funeral. This reflects the increasing importance of the individual over the