SKU: 10937330580

The Work of the Dead: A Cultural History of Mortal Remains

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The Work of the Dead: A Cultural History of Mortal RemainsThe meaning of our concern for mortal remains from antiquity through the twentieth century The Greek philosopher Diogenes said that when he died his body should be tossed over the city walls for beasts to scavenge. Why should he or anyone else care what became of his corpse? In The Work of the Dead, acclaimed cultural historian Thomas Laqueur examines why humanity has universally rejected Diogenes's argument. No culture has been indifferent to mortal

The meaning of our concern for mortal remains--from antiquity through the twentieth century

The Greek philosopher Diogenes said that when he died his body should be tossed over the city walls for beasts to scavenge. Why should he or anyone else care what became of his corpse? In The Work of the Dead, acclaimed cultural historian Thomas Laqueur examines why humanity has universally rejected Diogenes's argument. No culture has been indifferent to mortal remains. Even in our supposedly disenchanted scientific age, the dead body still matters--for individuals, communities, and nations. A remarkably ambitious history, The Work of the Dead offers a compelling and richly detailed account of how and why the living have cared for the dead, from antiquity to the twentieth century.

The book draws on a vast range of sources--from mortuary archaeology, medical tracts, letters, songs, poems, and novels to painting and landscapes in order to recover the work that the dead do for the living: making human communities that connect the past and the future. Laqueur shows how the churchyard became the dominant resting place of the dead during the Middle Ages and why the cemetery largely supplanted it during the modern period. He traces how and why since the nineteenth century we have come to gather the names of the dead on great lists and memorials and why being buried without a name has become so disturbing. And finally, he tells how modern cremation, begun as a fantasy of stripping death of its history, ultimately failed--and how even the ashes of the victims of the Holocaust have been preserved in culture.

A fascinating chronicle of how we shape the dead and are in turn shaped by them, this is a landmark work of cultural history.-- "Library Journal"

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 05/08/2018
ISBN: 9780691180939
Pages: 744
Weight: 2.00lbs
Size: 9.20h x 6.10w x 2.20d
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SKU: 10937330580

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Danyelle
Boise, US
★★★★★ 4
Fun with a late blooming omega
Format: Kindle
I like this book. The story is fun, cute, and sexy. There's just a little drama, some excellent, steamy scenes, and a fairly good relationship building storyline. I especially like how all the main characters are a bit older than the usual 20 somethings I tend to see in this kind of book. Having said that, I wish there were more descriptions of the places, as well as the food in the fancy restaurant. I enjoyed the cocktails at the club, so I missed that kind of detail when Gray took Madison on a dinner date. I also wish there had been more interaction between Lucas and Madison, and Lucas and Rian. It felt a bit lopsided, with a focus on Rian, Madison, and Gray. I wish it had been proofread - there are a lot of typos, but nothing too distracting.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2022
J
Verified Purchase
Jennifer G
Omaha, US
★★★★★ 3
Madison Deserved Better
Format: Kindle
Madison was a beta...except she wasn't any longer. She was a late presenting Omega. And she was struggling. She was tall and thin, not tiny and curvy. She was opinionated. She was everything an Omega was not. After suffering through her first heat, her friends took her to Ardor, a club where Omegas came to safely find Alphas. She's not expecting much but then she connects with a sexy beta. And when she meets his Alphas, they set her body on fire. Maybe, she's found her no-strings-attached heat pack. Maybe, she's found something more. I could not connect with the characters in this book, so their story never resonated with me. And there was no love story; there was sex. Grey made it clear from the beginning that he had a true love and it was his beta boy, Rian. He went so far as to reassure Rian “Say the word, I’ll never touch her again. Lucas can put the babies in her. I only need you, beta boy”. So, Madison was there for babies, no emotions needed. Nice. No, thank you. I want the Omega to be the center of their world, not an incubator. Lucas and Rian weren't any better. After her heat, they let her leave. Not one of them made her feel valued. No one gave her a reason to stay or even offered a cuddle. And the sex didn't even come across as mind-blowing. Madison deserved better.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 11, 2025
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Oregon BookWorm
New York, US
★★★★★ 5
No breakup, very sweet, instalove
Format: Kindle
Omegaverse and doesn't disappoint! Sweet guys, newly Omega FMC. The boyfriends are boyfriends. What's not to love? No angst, no breakup.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2025
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ForTheLOVEofBooks
Birmingham, US
★★★★★ 4
Pretty Darn Good
Format: Kindle
So I’ve been on a omega kick and this definitely hit the spot. Madison was frustrating at times with how she acted towards Lucas, Gray, and Rian. It was like she said towards the end, she didn’t believe she deserved nice things. It would have been nice to hear from her best friends again. They kind of were there in the beginning and the gone except for mention of text messages received from them. I feel like her friends would have been great help in encouraging Madison to go with the pack and never give Brent another chance because he was toxic. I loved Rian. His personality was awesome. His humor. His ability to make Madison comfortable whenever she was feeling overwhelmed. And the fact he fell for her and she fell for him first. They are cute together. I do feel like Lucas was the odd man out though. Like Lucas didn’t develop as much of a relationship with Madison. I would have really liked to see more development in the relationship between them. It was also the same with him and Rian. There is really no relationship displayed. Most of the relationship being displayed is between Rian and Gray. Nevertheless, I loved reading about the dynamic that came to fruition during the entirety of this story. Madison finally got her happiness. And Brent finally got punched in the face. Everyone got exactly what they deserve.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2022
E
Verified Purchase
ediebegonia
Los Angeles, US
★★★★★ 3
Pack's Promise was okay but not great
Format: Kindle
Pack's Promise was okay but not great. I won't recommend it to anyone that I know. PRO: * Very likable characters * Lots of steamy scenes that are written very well * The spelling and grammar are good * The punctuation is good with the exception of using hyphens instead of commas. Lots of hyphens. Lots and lots of hyphens. CON: * Almost no interactions with any characters outside of Madison and the pack * Nearly no plot. They meet, get together for a heat, agree to make it permanent, done * Quite a few typos such as extraneous words, missing words and words out of order THINGS TO KNOW: * More steamy scenes than storytelling * A lot of MM & MMM, some MFMM during heat
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Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2023

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