How End-of-Life Blogs Re-Affirm the “Power to be Oneself”

Powerlessness generally denotes loss of control and may be experienced among those with a terminal diagnosis and, as such, empowerment is a dominant discourse in end-of-life policy in the western Anglo-Saxon world. This paper analyzes thematically blogs authored by three people with a terminal diagnosis to examine the “power to be oneself,” a concept which was identified in the “Ethics of Powerlessness” project conducted in the UK. The analysis demonstrates that the bloggers assert the “power to be themselves” which is expressed in three principal ways. Firstly, through assertion of agency to promote self-affirmation and control. Secondly, through claiming a “moral authority” expressed by providing advice not just on illness and death but also on how life should be lived. Thirdly, through discussing ideas about the future and creating a legacy. The blogs are a mechanism used to express and reinforce self-identity and to carve out a “sacred space” between life and death to nurture personal change and to project this onto a public arena. This analysis demonstrates the key role patient empowerment plays in constructing an identity with a terminal diagnosis, an element that is often overlooked in end-of-life policy.

Ghosts and Religious Life in Early China

For modern people, ghost stories are no more than thrilling entertainment. For those living in antiquity, ghosts were far more serious beings, as they could affect the life and death of people and cause endless fear and anxiety. How did ancient societies imagine what ghosts looked like, what they could do, and how people could deal with them? From the vantage point of modernity, what can we learn about an obscure, but no less important aspect of an ancient culture? In this volume, Mu-chou Poo explores the ghosts of ancient China, the ideas that they nurtured, and their role in its culture. His study provides fascinating insights into the interaction between the idea of ghosts and religious activities, literary imagination, and social life devoted to them. Comparing Chinese ghosts with those of ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, Poo also offers a wider perspective on the role of ghosts in human history.

TAHLIL AL MA'ANY FI SYI'RI ROBI'ATI AL 'ADAWIYATI HAQIQATUL HUBBI : AL NAZHRATU AL SIMIYA'IYYATI AL RIFATIRY

This study aims to describe (1) heuristic reading (2) hermeneutic reading (3) matrix, model, and (4) hypogram in the poem “Hakikat Cinta” by Rabi'ah Al-Adawiyah. This research is a library research because the primary data and secondary data are in the form of books or related documents. This study uses a qualitative descriptive technique through the semiotic approach of Michael Riffaterre. The results of the study are as follows. (1) The heuristic recitation of each sentence shows that this poem tells the story of Rabi'ah's love for his Lord, in this case he gave his whole life and death to Allah. (2) The Hermeneutic reading tells about the rabi'ah immense love for Allah, this is expressed in every verse that she expresses through her poetry. (3) The matrix in this poem is the praises conveyed by the Rabi'ah to the creator. (4) The hypogram in this poem is an intertextual hypogram, which is an explanation related to the poetry written by Rabi'ah which is closely related to the verses of the Qur'an an. After using the semiotic theory of the riffaterre, it can be concluded that according to Rabi'ah the only purpose of life that is very natural to be loved is Allah. The word love which is repeated every time by the rabi'ah implies the integrated meaning of all love only to Allah, because all forms of love and feelings grow because of the beauty and perfection of Allah

Körper | Kultur | Konflikt

Society's view of dying and death no longer corresponds to the fixed images with which the corresponding areas of knowledge were associated until a few years ago. For a long time, the supposedly ›unambiguous‹ levels of meaning of this complex issue were stable enough to paralyse social scientific research. For some time now, however, discourses have been emerging that (re)question the normative elements of funeral culture, the treatment of dead bodies and cremation ashes, the labelling of medical diagnoses, and the determination of the boundary between life and death. Today, there is a—quite productive—tension between real practices and cultural guidelines.