Running head DEATH1DEATH2DeathUlysis .docx

Running head: DEATH 1
DEATH 2
Death
Ulysis Bonsu
Affiliation
Introduction
Death is the end of life of a person or an organism. The
phenomena that bring about death are aging, disease, suicide,
homicide, dehydration, or accident. Most often, the living
organism body begins to decompose shortly after death. Death
is considered a sad and an unpleasant occasion since it the loss
of a loved one or family due to the bonds and affection of the
person that has died thus causes anxiety, grief, emotional pain,
and depression to the people that have been left behind by the
deceased. In this modern age, most of us have seen more deaths
either on the television on the suicide, murder or fatal illness
storylines on TV dramas while others are covered in the daily
news especially now that the rate of death has increased unlike
in the past(Corr, Corr & Doka 2018)
One of the most traumatic death that I have watched in the
movies is about the death of a young motorist who was involved
in a road accident. The accident involved a truck and a
motorbike. The truck was overloaded with cargo, and the
weather was misty hence the vision was blurry, and the truck
driver did not see the motorist since he was overspeeding

because he was late with his deliveries thus he ran over him.
After realizing what he had done, he started panicking, and one
of the eyewitnesses called 911, who came to the rescue of the
young motorist. The paramedics performed a series of first aid
to try and save the young man life despite the injuries and blood
loss. On arrival to the hospital, the doctors tried what they
could to save the young man life, but unfortunately, he was
brain dead, and nothing else could have been done. When his
family arrived at the hospital, his life support was switched off,
and he died. The family of the deceased were devastated and
sad, especially the expectant wife who fainted thus risking the
life of their unborn baby. The other family member was
unhappy, especially since the motorist was just a young man
who had started his life not too long ago. The whole scene was
sad, and the truck driver was fired from his work because of his
recklessness, and the family wanted justice to happen by sueing
the driver so that he can pay for his mistake.
Compare and contrast the portrayal of death.
Death is portrayed differently in each format, and I got to learn
about death through various formats such as death portrayal in
literature such as stories and poetry, art, and even movies. The
first death is depicted in stories as a vital part of life, which
represent the end of life or transformation of a character. When
a character in a tale dies, the readers are compelled to undergo
an emotional release, especially for those characters that did not
deserve death. Hence death is used as a theme to elicit an
emotional response for the reader or the audiences. Also, death
in stories represents a face of transformation which is similar to
death where the characters die in battle or war which shows a
form of courage to face danger and even die in action which is
consoling to the family left behind. Also, death as a theme in a
story is meant as a way of inspiring the living to enjoy life
while still alive before it ends. Literally, humans fear death, and
often, people are saddened and angry when loved ones die; thus,
they get inspired to live a dignified life before their day comes
(Bookworm, 2012).

Similarly, death is portrayed as the end of life just as is
literature though in art it has a deeper meaning which acts as a
reminder of life importance for the living primarily through the
various form of art such as paintings, drawings or photography.
The death art images act as a way of finding a more profound
understanding of life as well a way of reminding all the living
that death is investable and everyone will face it at one point
("How Art Dealt with Death Throughout its History," n.d.)
Consequently, in movies, death represents the end just as in
literature and art. Death in movies is depicted compellingly and
interestingly, which is frightening at times since it creates a
clear picture of how death occurs and what goes on when one is
taking his last breath. Often a character’s death in a movie
signifies the end of his part in the movie which is shown inform
death from illness, suicide or homicide ("Death & Dying
Portrayed in Media " 2013)
Compare and contrast what you have seen on the shows with
what is learned about death in class material with personal
experience of death.
Death is portrayed in shows as a vital part of opening up people
to embrace death as a part of life for all ages starting from
children to adults. Some favorite shows such as the lion king
famous kid show the father being killed and the legendary
Titanic where hundreds of people died from a boat crash. Back
in the day, death and dying was a topic that people did not talk
about, but the media now has opened up the subject. The media
does a great job in influencing our understanding hence people
have learned how to adapt and deal with death in various forms
("Death & Dying Portrayed in Media " 2013) In the shows, all
aspect of what happens after one dies are shown, which include
church, funeral, and mourning which are shown in various
religions where the dead are cremated, buried, or reincarnated.
The death depiction in the shows act as a way of preparing
people on how to deal with the similar situation since no matter
how hard people try to avoid death, some case such aging and
illness will end up happening no matter how much we try to

prevent (Robben 2017)
Learning about death from learning material is very different
from learning it from shows in that one does not see the actual
emotion expression that a person experiences after the death of
a loved one. However, the learning materials show techniques
of emotionally overcoming the death of a person; thus, ways of
handling the situations are addressed unlike in shows where
ways of handling death are not expressed. Death is a situation
that touches everyone and provokes strong emotion, and one is
expected to control the emotion expression and only reveal the
permitted amount in a particular social setting. The learning
materials explain the step by step methods of recovery from a
loss which are practical even though some emotions are hard to
control. A student in schools is taught on how to handle loss as
well as death education, which explain why people die and the
significances of death in life.
Lastly, death is inevitable, and I have experienced it from
losing my best friend from cancer to losing my aunt. Both
deaths were painful, and it took a lot of time before I bounced
back. One thing that we never get to experience from learning
materials is the feeling and heartbreak that one feels when
he/she losses a loved one. The period of mourning is a critical
time in once life since we get to feel the pain and in as much as
one tries to control the emotions at times, it's hard. Depression
took over my life for months since I was unable to deal with her
death but after a lot of counseling I recovered but still, the pain
remains something that we are never shown is shows or learning
materials of any kind. Death comes to all and pain and anxiety
play a big part in handling death but by sharing the experience
with other people lessen the impact, and one can move on.
Conclusion
In conclusion, death is the most sensitive topic today, and many
people are affected by it. However, the death of a loved one
does not necessarily mean your death. Hence, people are taught
how to handle death through shows, movies, learning materials,
and personal experience to overcome that situation.

Unfortunately, death is part of life, and it cannot be avoided.
References
Bookworm. (2012, August 19). Literary Death. Retrieved from
https://literacle.com/literary- Corr, C. A., Corr, D. M., & Doka,
K. J. (2018). Death & dying, life & living. Cengage learning.
death/
Death & Dying Portrayed in Media (Blog #1). (2013, September
20). Retrieved from
https://gey4641.wordpress.com/2013/09/17/death-dying-
portrayed-in-media-blog-1/
How Art Dealt with Death Throughout its History. (n.d.).
Retrieved from https://www.widewalls.ch/death-art/
Robben, A. C. (Ed.). (2017). Death, mourning, and burial: a
cross-cultural reader. John Wiley & Sons.
Running head: DEATH 1
DEATH 7
Death
Ulysis Bonsu

Affiliation
Introduction
Death is the end of life of a person or an organism. The
phenomena that bring about death are aging, disease, suicide,
homicide, dehydration, or accident. Most often, the living
organism or body begins to decompose shortly after death.
Death is considered a sad and an unpleasant occasion since it
the loss of a loved one or family due to the bonds and affection
of the person that has died thus causes anxiety, grief, emotional
pain, and depression to the people that have been left behind by
the deceased. In this modern age, most of us have seen more
deaths either on the television on the suicide, murder or fatal
illness storylines on TV dramas while others are covered in the
daily news especially now that the rate of death has increased
unlike in the past (Corr, Corr & Doka, 2018). Comment by
matthew Binkewicz: Indent new paragraph. Comment by
matthew Binkewicz: Good thoughts expressed here, but a very
long sentence. Consider making this long sentence into two
shorter ones. Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Please note
minor corrections for proper citations. Very good opening
pargarph.
One of the most traumatic death that I have watched in the
movies is about the death of a young motorist who was involved
in a road accident. The accident involved a truck and a
motorbike. The truck was overloaded with cargo, and the
weather was misty hence the vision was blurry, and the truck
driver did not see the motorist since he was overspeeding
because he was late with his deliveries thus he ran over him.
After realizing what he had done, he started panicking, and one
of the eyewitnesses called 911, who came to the rescue of the
young motorist. The paramedics performed a series of first aid
to try and save the young man’s life despite the injuries and
blood loss. On arrival to the hospital, the doctors tried what
they could to save the young man’s life, but unfortunately, he
was brain dead, and nothing else could have been done. When

his family arrived at the hospital, his life support was switched
off, and he died. The family of the deceased were devastated
and sad, especially the expectant wife who fainted thus risking
the life of their unborn baby. The other family member was
unhappy, especially since the motorist was just a young man
who had started his life not too long ago. The whole scene was
sad, and the truck driver was fired from his work because of his
recklessness, and the family wanted justice to happen by sueing
the driver so that he can pay for his mistake. Comment by
matthew Binkewicz: Indent new paragraph. Comment by
matthew Binkewicz: Again, great sentence but too long.
Consider making this long sentence into two shorter ones.
Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Wordiness-consider
eliminating these words. Comment by matthew Binkewicz:
Spelling-revise. Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Spelling-
revise. Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Confusing-do you
mean his career? Revise.
Compare and contrast the portrayal of death.
Death is portrayed differently in each format, and I got to learn
about death through various formats such as death portrayal in
literature such as stories and poetry, art, and even movies. The
first death is depicted in stories as a vital part of life, which
represent the end of life or transformation of a character. When
a character in a tale dies, the readers are compelled to undergo
an emotional release, especially for those characters that did not
deserve death. Hence death is used as a theme to elicit an
emotional response for the reader or the audiences. Also, death
in stories represents a face of transformation which is similar to
death where the characters die in battle or war which shows a
form of courage to face danger and even die in action which is
consoling to the family left behind. Also, death as a theme in a
story is meant as a way of inspiring the living to enjoy life
while still alive before it ends. Literally, humans fear death, and
often, people are saddened and angry when loved ones die; thus,
they get inspired to live a dignified life before their day comes
(Bookworm, 2012). Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Please

take this out of hyperlink and convert to static text.
Similarly, death is portrayed as the end of life just as is
literature though in art it has a deeper meaning which acts as a
reminder of life importance for the living primarily through the
various form of art such as paintings, drawings or photography.
The death art images act as a way of finding a more profound
understanding of life as well a way of reminding all the living
that death is investable and everyone will face it at one point
("How Art Dealt with Death Throughout its History," n.d.)
Comment by matthew Binkewicz: Please take this out of
hyperlink and convert to static text. Make sure the remaining
citations are also out of hyperlink and changed to static text.
Consequently, in movies, death represents the end just as in
literature and art. Death in movies is depicted compellingly and
interestingly, which is frightening at times since it creates a
clear picture of how death occurs and what goes on when one is
taking his last breath. Often a character’s death in a movie
signifies the end of his part in the movie which is shown inform
death from illness, suicide or homicide ("Death & Dying
Portrayed in Media " 2013)
Compare and contrast what you have seen on the shows with
what is learned about death in class material with personal
experience of death.
Death is portrayed in shows as a vital part of opening up people
to embrace death as a part of life for all ages starting from
children to adults. Some favorite shows such as the lion king
famous kid show the father being killed and the legendary
Titanic where hundreds of people died from a boat crash. Back
in the day, death and dying was a topic that people did not talk
about, but the media now has opened up the subject. The media
does a great job in influencing our understanding hence people
have learned how to adapt and deal with death in various forms
("Death & Dying Portrayed in Media " 2013) In the shows, all
aspect of what happens after one dies are shown, which include
church, funeral, and mourning which are shown in various
religions where the dead are cremated, buried, or reincarnated.

The death depiction in the shows act as a way of preparing
people on how to deal with the similar situation since no matter
how hard people try to avoid death, some case such aging and
illness will end up happening no matter how much we try to
prevent (Robben 2017)
Learning about death from learning material is very different
from learning it from shows in that one does not see the actual
emotion expression that a person experiences after the death of
a loved one. However, the learning materials show techniques
of emotionally overcoming the death of a person; thus, ways of
handling the situations are addressed unlike in shows where
ways of handling death are not expressed. Death is a situation
that touches everyone and provokes strong emotion, and one is
expected to control the emotion expression and only reveal the
permitted amount in a particular social setting. The learning
materials explain the step by step methods of recovery from a
loss which are practical even though some emotions are hard to
control. A student in schools is taught on how to handle loss as
well as death education, which explain why people die and the
significances of death in life.
Lastly, death is inevitable, and I have experienced it from
losing my best friend from cancer to losing my aunt. Both
deaths were painful, and it took a lot of time before I bounced
back. One thing that we never get to experience from learning
materials is the feeling and heartbreak that one feels when
he/she losses a loved one. The period of mourning is a critical
time in once life since we get to feel the pain and in as much as
one tries to control the emotions at times, it's hard. Depression
took over my life for months since I was unable to deal with her
death but after a lot of counseling I recovered but still, the pain
remains something that we are never shown is shows or learning
materials of any kind. Death comes to all and pain and anxiety
play a big part in handling death but by sharing the experience
with other people lessen the impact, and one can move on.
Conclusion
In conclusion, death is the most sensitive topic today, and many

people are affected by it. However, the death of a loved one
does not necessarily mean your death. Hence, people are taught
how to handle death through shows, movies, learning materials,
and personal experience to overcome that situation.
Unfortunately, death is part of life, and it cannot be avoided.
References
Bookworm. (2012, August 19). Literary Death. Retrieved from
https://literacle.com/literary- Corr, C. A., Corr, D. M., & Doka,
K. J. (2018). Death & dying, life & living. Cengage learning.
death/
Death & Dying Portrayed in Media (Blog #1). (2013, September
20). Retrieved from
https://gey4641.wordpress.com/2013/09/17/death-dying-
portrayed-in-media-blog-1/
How Art Dealt with Death Throughout its History. (n.d.).
Retrieved from https://www.widewalls.ch/death-art/
Robben, A. C. (Ed.). (2017). Death, mourning, and burial: a
cross-cultural reader. John Wiley & Sons.
This paper is off to a good start, but work remains. You begin
with a good opening paragraph, offer insightful analysis and
comments supported by scholarly sources, and end with a good
conclusion. There are spelling, grammar, and punctuation
errors that need attention. I suggest you use Grammarly.com
and have another person read your paper before you hand in the
final draft. Although I read the entire paper, I only corrected
page 1; the rest is your responsibility. Assignment Grade: 92

SSCI 315 – Death, Dying and Bereavement Writing
Assignments #1 & #2 (50% of your grade)
Professor Matthew P.
Binkewicz, MA, FT
TOPIC: Learning about death through television
Among the ironies of the modern age is this: most of us have
much less personal experience with death than did our
grandparents, but most of us have seen more “deaths” than our
grandparents. How is this possible? Television! The regular
fare of TV includes murders, suicides and stories of fatal
illnesses. Some are fictionalized in TV drams, others are
covered in the news, and yet others appear in animated shows.
For most of us, television is where we learn about death, but
what do we learn?
PREPARING TO WRITE:
1) Review this information, your Paper Grading Rubric and the
syllabus information in BLACKBOARD.
2) Read Chapters 1, 2 and 3 in the class textbook.
3) Schedule yourself to watch and take notes on 2 types of
American media.
· One hour of news on television. This one hour MUST include
a story about death. If the newscast you watch does not have
any stories about death, you MUST watch more news until there
is a story.
· One hour of a fictional drama on television. Pick a drama that
includes a death in it. If the episode you watch does not have
any deaths, you MUST find a drama that does (e.g., NCIS).
4) Watch the video in Blackboard featuring Melissa Manchester
from the SUNY Canton Writing Center and Kaitlyn Patenaude
from the Southworth Library on how to cite and reference and

how to find legitimate research resources.
5) Consider meeting with someone from the Writing Center and
library to help you.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR WRITING ASSIGNMENTS #1 and #2
(50% of course grade)
· WRITE AN INTRODUCTION (1 page or less). Tell your
reader what you learned. Include a brief summary of what you
watched, answering “who, what, when, where, how and why.”
For example, explain how the deaths occurred, how they were
portrayed, the reactions of characters, etc. Do NOT waste time
and space with a verbatim script of each show you watched.
· COMPARE AND CONTRAST THE PORTRAYAL OF DEATH
IN EACH FORMAT (1 page or less). Demonstrate to the reader
how you came to learn what you learned. If you need space,
shorten your introduction and/or your conclusion. Remember to
cite any sources you use (including the class textbook) in the
body of the paper.
· COMPARE AND CONTRAST WHAT YOU’VE SEEN ON
THE SHOWS WITH WHAT YOU ARE LEARNING ABOUT
DEATH IN YOUR CLASS MATERIALS, WITH YOUR
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE OF DEATH AND INFORMATION
FROM A SCHOLARLY SOURCE (See above). (1 page or less).
Consider how the target audience(s) for the show, the show’s
sponsors and whether because the show appears on cable
television or on “regular” television might impact the depiction
of death. Are there any other reasons you can think of that
might impact how death is depicted in each format? You should
be concentrating most on this part of the paper.
· WRITE YOUR CONCLUSION(1 page or less). End your
paper with a strong conclusion.

· PROVIDE YOUR FINAL REFERENCE LIST IN CORRECT
APA FORMAT (not counted in the page count). This is on a
new page following the end of your paper.
Every citation you use in the body of your paper must have full
referencing information here. If you read something but did not
cite it in the body of your paper, it does NOT get referenced at
the end of your paper. If you DID cite something in your paper,
you MUST reference it here.
Writing Assignment #2 (Final Paper, final citations and final
reference list) due by Wednesday, June 26, 2019, 11:59 pm.
Writing Assignment #2 has the same requirements as Writing
Assignment #1: Rough Draft, but you must have corrected the
mistakes pointed out to you in the Rough Draft and taken the
time to review the paper using Grammarly.com, consulting with
the Writing Center, and doing a careful review. Do not simply
re-submit your uncorrected rough draft. This will be considered
a non-submission and you will receive a “0” for this
assignment.
How can you tell if you are using a legitimate source?
Generally, sites that end with .gov or .edu tend to be acceptable.
Government sites end with .gov. College and university sites
end with .edu (e.g. www.canton.edu). Work done through
colleges and universities CAN be acceptable. Be careful
because some college websites include sections where anybody
can post anything and some of it is just for fun. Information
officially posted by the college and its professors are considered
acceptable.
You may find decent online resources ending with .org,
designating a not-for-profit organization. However, many of
these sites tend to be a bit superficial and geared towards a
layperson’s perspective rather than an academic or scientific
one. Do not just use such sources.

Peer-reviewed journals (ex. professionals who review work by
other professionals) or professional journal articles are
generally acceptable.
Each department at SUNY Canton also has a designated
librarian in Southworth Library who can help you look for good
resources and review what you’ve found. Our specific librarian
is named Kaitlyn Patenaude. Please feel free to contact her at
[email protected] or at (315) 386-7057. If Ms. Patenaude is not
available, please contact another librarian at (315) 386-7228.
Ms. Patenaude recently participated in the filming of a video
demonstrating how to find good resources – this video is in
Blackboard for you to use. Ms. Patenaude shows you how to
use the SUNY Canton database system, which actually
identifies what is an academic resource!
Regardless of what source you use, evaluate the information
critically. As professional and educated as the authors might
be, they’re human too and you might spot flaws in their
arguments.
NOT ACCEPTABLE – If you use these sites, they will NOT be
counted for your paper!
· Wikipedia or any other such site where pretty much anybody
can submit information and it isn’t verified (even the founder of
Wikipedia says don’t use Wikipedia)!
· Blogs or generally any other source that is predominantly
unsupported opinions;
· Biased sources – Generally, as you are reading, evaluate
whether the author is acknowledging other perspectives and
looking at both sides of an issue. Extremely conservative and
some evangelistic sites may not necessarily offer an unbiased
view. Sources that are trying to sell you a service or product

are usually biased or questionable.
WHAT TO WRITE AND SUBMIT: Both writing assignments
are required and both together are worth 50% of your overall
course grade.
For Writing Assignment #2 (Final Paper): Worth 35% of course
grade).
Using Writing Assignment #1 and feedback on those
assignments from the instructor and the Writing Center (if
used), and the information below, compose your final paper.
On a new page, generate your final reference list, making sure
that every citation in the paper has a full reference on the
reference list and every full reference is cited in the body of the
paper.
Students are encouraged to also submit drafts into the free
Grammarly service (www.grammarly.com) to check for
plagiarism and grammatical problems. Please go through SUNY
Canton’s license to access Grammarly so that it will be free. If
you go directly to Grammarly, you will be charged a fee.
Submit the completed final version of your paper electronically
into the designated dropbox in Blackboard.
FINAL PAPER FORMAT: All papers for Writing Assignment
#2 MUST include the following formatting requirements.
Students who do not comply risk their paper being rejected or at
the minimum, having points deducted.
· 4 pages maximum (NOT including the title page, reference
page, or appendices (if any). Do NOT go over the maximum
number of pages for the body of the paper or the entire paper
may be rejected. Write concisely and avoid repetitiveness.
· Use 1.5 spacing, 12 point font size, Ariel, Calibri, or Times

New Roman font style, and 1” margins all around. See also
syllabus and writing assignment information posted in
Blackboard for additional requirements.
· Composed in Microsoft Word and saved as a .doc or .docx
ONLY. If you submit your paper as a pdf or in a format that the
instructor can’t open for editing, your paper will be considered
late at a minimum.
· The electronic file title should be titled with your last name
first, accompanied by your first initial, and then the name of the
paper (ex. Smith_A_Televised_Death).
· Presented professionally, to include:
· Title page with the title of your paper, your name, the name
and semester of the class, email address, and your telephone
number.
· Complete and correct reference list following APA formatting
and matching all citations in the body of the paper.
· All pages except for the title page numbered at the top OR
bottom. No page number on the title page.
· The use of scholarly language, NOT colloquialisms (slang),
emoticons/emojis, abbreviations, profanity, etc. that are more
suitable to texting, tweeting, and the like, unless it is being used
to demonstrate a point AND explained.
· Strong attention to standard, college-level grammar,
punctuation, other writing mechanics and
possible plagiarism. Students are expected to proofread,
spellcheck, use Grammarly and to request help from
services such as from the Writing Center if needed and
recommended.

· Graphics, cartoons, tables and figures are to be used
judiciously and only to illustrate an important point. If
used, they are to be put into an appendix or appendices at the
end of the paper and are NOT counted in the page count.
Please do not use these items merely to “decorate” your paper.
· Black ink only. Do not use colors, shadings, special effects,
animations, etc.
· If you use examples from your personal or professional life,
ensure that you maintain strict confidentiality of other
people you may talk about.
1

Running head DEATH1DEATH2DeathUlysis .docx

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

More from todd271

More from todd271 (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Running head DEATH1DEATH2DeathUlysis .docx