Death in America

There are four stages of death that Philippe Aries discusses in Western Attitudes Towards Death. These stages include many different aspects such as time periods, reactions towards death, rituals, and cultural components. The stages range from the years 300 to the1930's. The four models used by Aries are "Tamed Death", "One's Own Death", "Thy Death", and "Forbidden Death." Each stage differentiates itself from the previous, with contradicting ideas and societal claims. Literary works The Cholera …

…been touched by the literary works. "Tamed Death" does not have the criterion that allows it to be associated with the writings because of the time frame which it takes place in. The movement from each stage overlaps in some works creating transitional writings that fall in between the stages and exemplify criteria from each. Overall, Aries is successful in analyzing the practices and ideas of Western culture as seen through the literary work discussed.