Abstract
We establish our selves through narratives--with others and by ourselves--during life. What happens, however, when a person dies? The following paper looks at the way narratives about the deceased's selves are created by the bereaved after their loved ones have died. The paper focuses on the narratives created on the deceased's tombstones, as these are available to the public and last the longest of all final declarations of the person's identity (i.e., obituaries, funeral programs, eulogies). Because I am interested in the way narratives of the self are constructed postmortem, a symbolic interactionist approach was used. The study focuses on three hundred fifty (350) tombstones in fifteen cemeteries around south central Minnesota. Using a coding system to analyze the messages presented on the stones, I show the various ways individuals are described--and how these ways change depending on the time during which they lived and their religious and cultural affiliations. In addition, because the use of cemeteries is extremely prevalent in American society, discovering what we say about our deceased loved ones can be useful outside of southern Minnesota as well.
Advisor
Leah Rogne
Committee Member
Emily Boyd
Committee Member
Kathryn Elliot
Date of Degree
2012
Language
english
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
Master of Arts (MA)
College
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Recommended Citation
Ritter, L. J. (2012). Grave Exclamations: An Analysis of Tombstones and Their Use as Narrative of Self [Master’s thesis, Minnesota State University, Mankato]. Cornerstone: A Collection of Scholarly and Creative Works for Minnesota State University, Mankato. https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/etds/242/
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