Digitized Mourning

Virtual memorials and services in the Internet

Authors

• Anne Haverinen University of Turku

DOI: https://doi.org/10.30676/jfas.127501

Abstract

Perceptions of the afterlife, and ways of treating the dead and honouring the memory of the deceased, are unique in every culture, but all cultures have ways of expressing such concepts and experiences, with funeral services and mourning periods with specific their dress and social codes only a few aspects of this. In Western society, death rituals changed dramatically over the twentieth century. It has even been argued that this has led to a ‘utopia’ where sorrow and  mourning are considered almost weaknesses and where it is possible to reach adulthood without having to face death and loss. Some researchersclaim that this is a result of industrialization and urbanization, lack of communality, and the rise of individualism and an ideal of efficiency (Ariés 1974, 1991; Pentikäinen 1990). Meanwhile modern technology, specifically virtual technology, has made possible new variations on old mourning rituals and created new ways to express honour, give condolences and share experiences. Here I want to look at some of these changes, examining in particular their likely impact on mourning in Finland, known for its enthusiastic adoption of technological innovation in everyday life.