Analysis Of Sandy Hingston's Death Of A Funeral Business

Society has changed immensely in the past century, culture and technology are progressing faster than ever. Past traditions and rituals have been shed or turned into nuance versions of themselves. Everything has been affected by the growth of societies changing ideology, even funerals. In the article, Death of a Funeral Business by Sandy Hingston, she talks about how contemporary funeral rituals our society has taken in and the old traditions we have gone away from. By using a combination of witty anecdotes and statistics to involve the reader, Hingston comments on the changing culture of the funeral business.
A passage from Death of a Funeral Business that shows how Hingston presents her ideas that our perception of death and funerals have
“Contemporary funerals are like that picture—they’re not about life after death, but about how we want to be remembered, or at least (since the dead can’t control the living) how our loved ones want us to be.” (pg.39). This statement is important because it aligns with America’s changing view towards death. Funerals are evolving into an act for the living, giving our loved ones the chance to celebrate and remember our lives. This text is strategically placed right after the author’s personal story about her mom wanting all her grand kids to have a specific photo to remember her by. The placement strengthens the idea of funerals being about remembrance. Readers may find this passage relatable, because as time goes on, many of us have attended funerals that exemplify these ideas. While Older generations also may find it interesting, because the way that funerals are changing may differ greatly from what they used to be. The passage directly relates to the overall idea of the article because it’s talking about how funerals have changed from being religious rites to being more about