Intended Audience
Scholarly & Professional
LCCN
2012-003265
Dewey Edition
23
Reviews
Invisible Population: The Place of the Dead in East Asian Megacities is an excellent and insightful study of death-related practices and industries in China, Korea, and Japan. Based on fieldwork in these three very different Asian countries, the authors explore changes in funeral customs, innovations in the forms and locations of graves, and the treatment of the corpse. The research is well integrated and clearly presented. The book can be read by both scholars and students of East Asia.
Grade From
College Graduate Student
Illustrated
Yes
Dewey Decimal
393/.93095
Table Of Content
Introduction, Natacha Aveline-DubachChapter 1: Creative Destruction--The Shattering of the Family Grave System in Japan, Natacha Aveline-DubachChapter 2: The Experience of Death in Japan's Urban Societies, Katsumi ShimaneChapter 3: Emerging Burial Spaces and Rituals in Urban Japan, Fabienne Duteil-OgataChapter 4: The Revival of the Funeral Industry in Shanghai: A Model for China, Natacha Aveline-DubachChapter 5: Dealing with the Dead: Funerary Rites in Contemporary Shanghai, Maylis BellocqChapter 6: Traditional Funerary Rites Facing Urban Explosion in Guangzhou, Yukihiro KawaguchiChapter 7: Cremation's Success in Korea: Old Beliefs and Renewed Social Distinctions, Elise PrebinChapter 8: Funerary Sites in Seoul: A History Marked by Colonial Experience, Ryohei TakamuraChapter 9: Overview of Korea's Funeral Industry, Shi-Dug KimConclusion
Synopsis
The issue of population ageing in East-Asia has been extensively studied but we remain in the dark as to the fate of the region's growing dead population, particularly in the largest metropolitan areas where there is bitter competition for space among the various human activities. From private cemetery developers to undertakers, not to mention a vast array of sub-contractors, death is discreetly helping a multitude of industry players to prosper. The result has been the transformation of funeral services into a fully-fledged industry that is rapidly expanding and adapting to the needs of urban societies with their extreme lack of space. In the specific context of East-Asian megacities, funeral rituals and practices are evolving rapidly in an attempt to conform to spatial constraints and address emerging challenges such as urban sustainability and growing social inequalities. Research dealing with death in East-Asia has so far focused on symbolic and religious issues, ignoring the social, economic and spatial dimensions that have become crucial in a context of rapid urbanization. This book aims to remedy this situation while highlighting for the first time the shared characteristics of funerary issues across Japan, Korea and China., This book provides new information on funerary practices in East Asia's largest cities in which spatial constraints and the secularization of lifestyles are driving innovation. It reveals common trends in Japan, China and Korea, and addresses emerging challenges such as urban sustainability and growing social inequities.
LC Classification Number
GT3282.I68 2012
