The word is derived from the Greek language. In Greek mythology, Thanatos (θάνατος: "death") is the personification of death. The English suffix -ology derives from the Greek suffix -logia (-λογια: "speaking").
Thanatology does not directly explore the meaning of life and of death. Medically, this question is irrelevant to those studying it. Some medical texts refer to inquiries of the meaning of life and death as absurd and futile. However, the question is very relevant to the psychological health of those involved in the dying process: individuals, families, communities, and cultures. Thanatology explores how the question affects those involved, not the question itself.
The humanities are, perhaps, the very oldest disciplines to explore death. Historically, the average human had a significantly lower standard of living and lifespan in the past than he or she would today. Wars, famine, and disease always kept death close at hand. Artists, authors, and poets often employed the universality of death as a motif in their works; this trend continues today.
The social sciences are often involved on both the individual and on the cultural level. The individual level is primarily covered by psychology, the study of individual minds. Avoiding (or, in some cases, seeking) death is an important human motive; the fear of death affects many individuals' actions.
Several social sciences focus on the broad picture, and they frequently encounter the issue of death. Sociology is the study of social rules. Sub-disciplines within sociology, such as the sociology of disaster, focus more narrowly on the issue of how societies handle death. Likewise, cultural anthropology and archeology concern themselves with how current and past cultures deal with death, respectively. Society and culture are similar concepts, but their scopes are different. A society is an interdependent community, while culture is an attribute of a community: the complex web of shifting patterns that link individuals together. In any case, both cultures and societies must deal with death; the various cultural studies (many of which overlap with each other) examine this response using a variety of approaches.
Both religion and mythology concern themselves with what happens to the "soul" after death. They usually involve reincarnation or some form of an afterlife. The universal life-death-rebirth deity glorifies those who are able to overcome death. Although thanatology does not directly investigate the question itself, it is concerned with how people choose to answer the question for themselves. For example, an individual who believes that she will go to heaven when she dies will likely be less afraid of death. Alternatively, a terminally ill individual who believes that suicide is a sin may be wracked with guilt. On one hand, he may wish to end the suffering, but on the other hand, he may believe that he will be sent to hell for eternity unless he dies naturally, however long and painful that may be. The loved ones of individuals like these are likewise either consoled or distressed, depending on what they believe will ultimately happen to the dying individual. Faith can inspire comfort, anxiety, and sometimes both. This is an important point to those studying thanatology and the sociology of religion.
Medical science and applied medicine are also very important fields of study used in thanatology. The biological study of death helps explain what happens, physically, to individuals in the moment of dying and after-death bodily changes. Pharmacology investigates how prescription drugs can ease death, and in some cases prevent early deaths. Psychiatry, the medical application of psychological principles and therapeutic drugs, is also involved; many licensed psychiatrists are required to take courses on thanatology during training. Medical ethics are also an important area of study, especially on the issue of euthanasia ("right to die").
There is also a branch of thanatology called music-thanatology which focuses on the use of "music vigils" to help the individual and their family. A vigil consists of one or a team of music-thanatologists who visit the dying person. They play the harp and sing music based on changes that they observe in patient physiology as well as in interpersonal family dynamics. The music tends toward the meditative, and can be very helpful to the patient and others that are present. Often after a vigil, the dying person is more relaxed, less agitated, and is in less pain. Most music-thanatologists are certified by the Music-Thanatology Association International, and they use the initials "CM-Th" to designate certification by this professional organization. Many hospitals and hospices now have professional music-thanatologists on their staff.
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
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