Bereavement Narratives

Bereavement is often treated as a psychological condition of the individual with both healthy and pathological forms. However, this empirically-grounded study argues that this is not always the best or only way to help the bereaved. In a radical departure, it emphasizes normality, and social and cultural diversity in grieving.

Christine Valentine is a researcher and teacher at the Centre for Death and Society, University of Bath. She is currently based at the University of Tokyo comparing bereavement in the UK and Japan.

Introduction Part 1: Preserving and Affirming Personhood 1. Humanising a loved one's dying 2. Constructing a good death 3. Dying moments Part 2: Absence and Presence 4. Defining loss 5. Materialising loss 6. Rediscovering presence 7. Locating and sustaining presence 8. Continuing bonds in contemporary society