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Funerals USA offers funeral planning advice for a family’s executor in making many critical decisions. Features comparative pricing models for interment services in the United States.
Funeral services remain important today for most families and most societies. However, there is also a pattern of conflict and controversy. The ancient and nearly universal process of observing funeral ceremonies has found opposition from those who see such behavior as inappropriate to contemporary beliefs and values, and also from those who have encountered sharp business practices or outright fraud in the arrangement of commercial funerals.
One current example of conflict can be found in mainland China. The Communist regime (especially under Mao TseTung and Chou En-Lai) strongly discouraged the traditional practice of ground burial and all its accompanying ritual. Instead, Chinese were to cremate their dead and scatter the ashes. This new doctrine was supported by such actions as the construction of hundreds of crematoriums and the offering of "bargain" prices for cremation. This "modern" approach to body disposal became standard practice. Now, however, the old ways are returning. Taking advantage of the liberalization that followed the termination of the repressive
Cultural Revolution, some Chinese have become prosperous enough to afford tomb burial for themselves and their ancestors (Browning, 1988). Authorities are reported as being disturbed over the large acreage of valuable farmland that is being converted to burial space, as well as by the burgeoning demand for the limited supply of wood. Accompanying this revival of the ancient tradition is the reappearance of the "Feast of Hungry Ghosts," a holiday observance forbidden by the former regime. In this instance, then, the forces of pragmatic economic planning and modernism have been countered by the people's opportunity to restore a cherished tradition.
Controversy and conflict have-taken a different form in North America. Here a focus of dissension has been what many have seen as the unacceptable expense and ostentation involved in funeral arrangements. These practices were held up to criticism and ridicule by Nancy Mitford (1963) in The American Way of Death, a book that attracted wide readership and discussion. Other books of a more scholarly nature (e.g., Bowman, 1959; Irion, 1966) also raised questions and concerns. Were Americans attempting to compete with each other by overspending on funerals? Were funeral directors taking advantage of the public? Were funerals even needed in today's world, or were they useless relics from our collective past?
Although these questions are still debated, some constructive patterns have emerged in recent years. Federal regulations in the United States now require funeral directors to make their prices readily available to all prospective customers. This disclosure regulation and other provisions give the consumer ready access to information needed in making decisions, although consumers must still be alert enough to take advantage of this opportunity. Furthermore, a number of human service organizations and consumer advocacy groups now provide information and guidance for those who would like some help in examining the available alternatives. Inexpensive funerals are available through local Memorial Society chapters, and useful guidebooks are in circulation (Lamont, 1954; Manual of Simple Burial, 1964).
The funeral industry itself has spoken out against those individuals and firms that have engaged in deceptive practices or applied undue pressure on family members. The National Funeral Directors Association and many of its members are aware of the standards that should be maintained and realize that the reputation of the entire industry is threatened whenever one funeral director engages in a shoddy practice. Moreover, there is a marked increase in the number of funeral directors who have educated themselves in such' fields as counseling, psychology, and sociology and become sensitive to the needs of bereaved persons. Deceptive and fraudulent practices have not been eradicated, but the consumer now has an improved chance of finding funeral directors who will listen carefully to their needs and provide suitable arrangements.
Through some of their own sponsored research (e.g., Marks & Calder, 1982), funeral directors have become more aware of the public's expectations and wishes, as well as how funeral services are evaluated by family members. This is another encouraging sign that, as a whole, funeral directors are attempting to meet emerging needs in a responsible manner. Nevertheless, the future of funeral services will continue to depend much upon the way each of us chooses to think about life and death and how honestly and completely we choose to share these thoughts with those closest to us.
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