Mortality, Immortality, and Other Life Strategies

Synopsis

Zygmunt Bauman's book is a brilliant exploration, from a sociological point of view, of the "taboo" subject in modern death and dying. The book develops a new theory of the ways in which human mortality is reacted to, and dealt with, in social institutions and culture. The hypothesis explored in the book is that the necessity of human beings to live with the constant awareness of death accounts for crucial aspects of the social organization of all known societies. Two different "life strategies" are distinguished in respect of reactions to mortality.