Memento Mortuorum
The Necrosociality of Whole-Body Donor Remembrance Ceremonies
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 13628263 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Konstantinos Mountrakis (0009-0003-2877-6441, Department of Anatomy, NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine, Old Westbury, NY, USA, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Pages | 302228251333993-302228251333993 |
| Publication date | 2025-04-14 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | OMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0030-2228 • E-ISSN: 1541-3764 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/00302228251333993 |
| PMID | 40226922 |
| OpenAlex | W4409410520 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 22 |
This study explores whole-body donor remembrance ceremonies as secondary mortuary rituals within medical education, analyzing their role in transitioning donors from educational tools to persons reintegrated into a framework of respect and reverence. Through participant observation, textual analysis, and symbolic interpretation, the research investigates themes of gratitude, personhood, and symbolic exchange. The ceremonies are contextualized within anthropological frameworks of liminality and necrosociality, highlighting parallels with global mortuary practices. We observe that these rituals serve not only as acts of commemoration but also as pedagogical tools, fostering professional empathy and reinforcing societal trust in anatomical donation programs. By addressing the social and ethical dimensions of body donation, the study emphasizes the ceremonies' role in humanizing medical education while affirming the cultural significance of death and remembrance. This work contributes to a broader understanding of the intersection between ritual, education, and the social construction of personhood
Aesthetics · Art · Empathy · Epistemology · Gratitude · Interpretation (philosophy · Liminality · Parallels · Personhood · Reverence · Sociology · Anatomy and Medical Technology · Anthropology · Empathy and Medical Education · Ethics in medical practice · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology
The ritual process
Placing the dead
Death Without Weeping
The Forest of Symbols
Celebrations of Death
The Death Rituals of Rural Greece
The Logic of Practice
Symbolic Exchange and Death
Secondary burial in the Netherlands
The sacred crematorium
Club Dead, Not Club Med
New immortalities
Relational anatomy
Spiritual Meaning of Cadaveric Organ Donation among Protestant Korean Immigrants in the United States
The Ritual Process
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2025 (1) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |