Death and the Human Condition

Front Cover
iUniverse, 2002 - Family & Relationships - 288 pages

This is an interdisciplinary work on the somewhat culturally-tabooed topic of death—psychological, psychiatric, historical, developmental, biogenetic, biomedical, and theological—its nature, consequences, and implications as explored and conceptualized by current living Americans. Included also among its hypothesized and associated concepts is the doctrine of an afterlife, as well as various attitudes and reactions to death as the perceived chief limiting factor of the human condition (denial, avoidance, anger, etc.). Unlike its handling by other books on death, the close relationship of death as a terminating phenomenon of life is thoroughly explored in the context of such central concepts of Christian moral theology as salvation, justification, free will, justice, love, anger, sin, expiation, forgiveness, retribution, etc.

This book is undoubtedly discriminably different from other serious works of non-fiction if only because it deals with the culturally-tabooed topic of death. Nevertheless, many individuals in all cultures are at least privately or secretly interested in this topic because of the mystery surrounding it, but usually more so, because it inevitably involves themselves in the loss of their own identities in their own culture, and also, very relevantly, stimulates much speculation about their own fate in the hereafter.

All of the controversial issues in this book are examined both for and against the Christian theistic view by presenting material by a Christian non-believer as well as by a Christian believer.

 

Selected pages

Contents

Introduction
1
Conceptualizations of the Nature and Implications of Death
23
Biomedical and Developmental Issues
169
Fear Anxiety Insecurity Anger and Depression
191
Denial and Avoidance Reactions to Death
211
Resignation and Acceptance
233
Epilogue
257
Bibliography
263
About the Author
265
Back Cover
267
Copyright

Other editions - View all

Death and the Human Condition
David Ausubel
No preview available - 2002
Death And The Human Condition
David Ausubel
No preview available - 2002

Common terms and phrases

according to believers actually Adam’s adjustive reactions afterlife anger aspects attitudes behavior biological body body image cellular and neural Christian cognitive conceive concept conscience considered cosmic cosmological course culpability culture definite denial denial of death difficulty divine doctrine dying earth earthly identity effects emotional endorphin eternal ethical existence expiation expression extinction fact faith fear of death field final first functioning future genic God’s heaven hence human identity and personality implications of death important indefinitely independent religion individual individual’s inevitable influence interpersonal Jesus judgment justice latter less living man’s moral conduct moral relativism moral values narcissistic nature and implications nature of death neural substrates non-believer obviously occur one’s perceived potential psychological punishment reactions to death reason reflect regarded relationship relatively relevant religion repression resurrection retribution salvation self-concept self-esteem senescence sense significance sinner sins social soul specific spirit supernatural tend theological threat tion tive unconditional forgiveness

About the author (2002)

David P. Ausubel was born in 1918 and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He attended the University of Pennsylvania, taking the pre-medical course and majoring in Psychology. After graduating from the medical school at Middlesex University, he completed a rotating internship at Gouveneur Hospital located in the lower east side of Manhattan, including the Little Italy and Chinatown of 1944. His military service began then with the US Public Health Service. He was assigned to UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration) in Stuttgart, Germany working with displaced persons. Three psychiatric residences followed: with the US Public Health Service in Kentucky, the Buffalo Psychiatric Center, and Bronx Psychiatric Center. With assistance from the GI Bill, he earned a PH.D in Developmental Psychology from Columbia University. A series of psychological professorships ensued at schools of education: the University of Illinois, University of Toronto, and in the European universities at Berne, the Salesian University at Rome, and the Officer's Training College at Munich. He received a Fulbright Research Grant in 1957-58 to do a comparative study of the vocational motivation of Maoris and Europeans. In 1973 he retired from academic life to devote full time to his psychiatric practice. His principal interests in psychiatry have been general psychopathology, ego development, drug addiction, and forensic psychiatry. Dr. Ausubel published extensively : textbooks in developmental and educational psychology and books on specialized topics such as drug addiction, psychopathology, and ego development, and over 150 articles in psychological and psychiatric journals. In 1976 he received the Thorndike Award from the American Psychological Association for "Distinguished Psychological Contributions to Education". He retired from professional life in 1994 to devote himself full time, at the age of 75, to writing.

Bibliographic information

TitleDeath and the Human Condition
AuthorDavid P. Ausubel
PublisheriUniverse, 2002
ISBN0595231977, 9780595231973
Length288 pages
Subjects › 

Family & Relationships / Death, Grief, Bereavement
Philosophy / Religious
Self-Help / Death, Grief, Bereavement
  
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