探寻人生原初的意义--论阎连科小说的生命意识

阎连科执著地探寻人生原初的意义,是一位有着浓郁生命意识的当代作家。他以令人战栗和疼痛的方式,书写耙耧山民的沉重苦难、困境中的苦中作乐、近于原始的性爱,使“活着”本身呈现出人生意义。他把耙耧人置于死亡的阴影之中,以此激发他们悲壮无畏地反抗宿命。作家对人生的体悟归结为生命应回归婴儿,回归自然。     

文明de空白

在地球生物圈内,人类是唯一能够超前地意识到个体的生命存在最终将不可避免地走向死亡的理性物种。干百年来,人类对自身死亡现象所形成的且不断发展变化着的种种认识、心态、观念等等,构成了社会文化的独特组成部分。在现代发达国家,由于医药科学的进步和人们对生命质量的追求,越来越多的国家和地区把开展和接受死亡教育视为人生的必修课题。但在我国,死亡教育尚属空白。笔者认为,填补这一空白不仅是文明发展的必然,而且至少具有两个方面重要的现实意义。     

推开窗户,生命鲜活(之二)

生命是不可消灭的.所谓人的死亡并非生命的消亡,人的死亡是生命由一种形态(某种组织形态)向他种形态的突变,而非渐变.渐变可视为某种生命形态的稳定,突变则是某种生命形态向他种生命形态的转化.     

趋生之死:日本动画的死亡审美

日本动画中对死亡现象的关注,背后的文化动因是对生命的留恋。这种留恋通过生命的另一极——死亡展现出来。其动画文本的死亡审美通过三种方式达成:一是死亡为与生命一样的日常,死亡因通向平凡的日常性而具有感悟的超脱之美;二是对生命的本体崇拜与生命轮回说体现了对永生的追求,平行世界的设定和此死彼生的情节给予死亡生的善意,死亡因之具有德性的希望之美;三是为了弥补彼世的破除和生的短暂与有限,死亡的瞬间被凝固于永恒存在的想象性弥补中,从而使死亡具有辩证的悲剧之美。对生死两端的奇妙融合给日本动画带来独特而民族化的审美效果。     

安乐死合法化诸问题刍议

自20世纪80年代以来,伴随着医学技 术的进步和生命科学研究的发展,安乐死的 本质及其合法化成为一个人们普遍关心的课题。“安乐死”的现代含义是指经患者本人或其委托,多次提出请求,采用仁慈和尽可能无痛苦的方式减轻和解除患不治之症且濒临死亡患者不堪忍受的事实痛苦而实现的一种优化的死亡状态。它通过科学的方法对人的死亡过程进行优化调节,使人的死亡过程中避兔精神和肉体上的痛苦折磨,优化死亡状态,使死亡安乐化。“安乐死的对立面不是‘痛苦地生’,而是‘痛苦地死’”(祝世讷等,1998:342-345)。 安乐死研究在我国起步较晚,1986年6月23日,     

死亡医学化的社会阶梯与文化抉择 ——基于云南省某市2009-2014年人口死亡地点分析

云南省某市的死亡人口统计数据表明,死亡地点分布呈现以职业地位、 教育程度为基础的阶梯态势,阶位较高者更可能积极参与死亡医学化进程,而阶位较低者反而更可能回避作为健康消极结果的死亡医学化的侵袭.对阶位较低者而言,医疗可及性不足同样使他们的死亡以侵犯生命尊严的形式发生.同时,彝族等少数民族较汉族更可能死于家中,这相异于现代生物医学的死亡观念.临终文化实践可以帮助人们摆脱死亡医学化的阴霾,但这种可能性只发生于职工阶层.这表明人们对死亡医学化侵袭的能动因应,是以死者及其家庭拥有充分的经济和社会保障资源为先决条件的.该条件的普遍缺乏,能够解释为什么中国实现优逝善终的普遍性较低.     

庄子的生死智慧及其现代价值

庄子以理性主义和自然主义的态度对待生死,力图探讨生死的本质,揭开笼罩在"生死"之上的神秘面纱,以寻求宁静超越的精神境界,为现代人生死困惑的解决提供了参考价值。"道"是其生死智慧的理论基础;"气化"是其对生死的本质界定,生死的变化不过是气的聚散而已。不悦生不恶死及"善生善死"是庄子对生死的态度:既要善待生命,人应该做的、可以做的就是养生,顺其自然地使生命本性得以发挥;又要以旷达的胸怀面对死亡,打破对死亡惧怕的固有态度,以死为息,最终达到一种自在、自然与自由的超然境界,庄子把这种境界称之为"逍遥"。     

死亡赔偿的理论基础

“死亡”不是一般价值物的灭失,而是生命的丧失。生命价值如何计算,不仅在于它是一种抽象的、精神上的东西,而且涉及到伦理道德诸方面的问题。又因为人之权利能力始于出生,止于死亡,被害人既已死亡,也就无损害赔偿请求权,故“死亡”本身无损害赔偿的余地。因此,实务上所探讨的损害赔偿的范围不包括“死亡”本身;死亡赔偿请求权主体,也只能是死者以外的第三人。死亡赔偿的理论基础,立法例上有继承丧失说和抚养丧失说。但是把死亡赔偿的基础无论是解释为继承丧失说,还是抚养丧失说,都会出现难以自怡的理论和实践问题,因此需要另辟蹊径。人的价值学说,可以作为死亡赔偿的理论基础。     

儒家生死观的现代解读

现代人面临一系列的生死问题困扰:生活的无意义感;生命的迷惘和困惑;临终关怀的缺失等等。对儒家学说中关于生死观的解读,可以为现代人提供相应的帮助。其一是在儒家积极的入世精神中以完善人生来坦然地面对死亡,展示出那一种宁静淡泊的东方智慧;其二是以家庭亲情的陪伴、父死子继的生命延续来弱化临终死亡的痛苦;其三超出个人生活层次,以三不朽的超越意识来摆脱死亡恐惧;四是以复归天地、重回大化流行来证实死而不亡。这些都体现了儒家对生活的积极态度和对生命的无比尊重。     

卡夫卡小说的死亡意识

卡夫卡小说的死亡意识祖国颂人以生命的形式来到这个世界上，构成了一种现实的存在，当人的生命降临尘世，一切都可能是不确定的，一切都有着千万种选择。然而死亡却是确定了的，它是生命的孪生姐妹，它是唯一不需要生命的努力而必要达到的客观存在。舍勒说得好：“每个生...     

时间与海德格尔的“时间性”

本文不是试图对海德格尔进行解释 ,而是试图从文本本身的角度质疑《存在与时间》中概念的矛盾性。《存在与时间》建立了一种新的 ,关于时间始源性问题的学说。时间的始源 ,被海德格尔称为“时间性”。时间性在此在分析中有中心地位 ,对时间作出了新的解释。然而时间性本身却是一个矛盾概念。时间性源于死的本真性 ;死所以是最本真的 ,因为死是必须此在自己去承担的存在可能性。如果以是否自己去承担为标准 ,那么此在能承担的存在可能性并不只有死。所以死不可能是最本真的。因而 ,时间性也不可能是始源性的时间学说。文章通过对时间性的分析指出 ,时间性学说是建立在对于时间的一般理解之上的。     

爱伦·坡《红死魔的面具》的叙事艺术

爱伦·坡在《红死魔的面具》中表达主题与形式对应,是传统情节的奇异颠倒。小说形式可视为信息量积累过程,标题显示主客观间的矛盾。创造与毁灭,生与死象征两极。小说中悲哀的气氛愈来愈深沉,而浓重地全然笼罩着读者。《红死魔的面具》是专制统治者自身的"判决书"。     

哲学视野中的死亡超越

死亡是个体生命之必然归宿,现实社会对待死亡普遍有回避心理,然而现代医学进步使死亡问题无法回避,而死亡意识又是构建哲学的基础和主要内容,为此哲学必须研究死亡意识与现象,其目的是通过研究死亡以反思人的生命意义及生存价值,实现哲学意义上的精神超越。     

从“阿喀琉斯之死”到“苏格拉底之死”——苏格拉底哲学的荷马背景分析

关于苏格拉底之死,有维护贵族统治说、拥护民主说、悲剧说与顽固保守和不见容于希腊说等几种主流的死因分析.但苏格拉底在命运、选择方面对荷马史诗中阿喀琉斯的认同,以及阿喀琉斯之死,笔者以为苏格拉底之死是有其深刻的文化背景的,应从"阿喀琉斯之死"所昭示的希腊精神入手,在希腊文化层面上对苏格拉底之死进行分析.     

Burnout and Death Anxiety in Hospice Social Workers

Hospice work has been regarded as particularly stressful due to the complexity inherent in the provision of end-of-life care. Burnout and death anxiety are especially relevant to hospice social workers because they regularly function in a high-stress, high-loss environment. The purpose of this study was threefold: to determine the prevalence of burnout and death anxiety among hospice social workers; to examine associations between burnout and death anxiety; and to explore the factors which may contribute to the development of death anxiety and burnout. Participants completed four items: the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS), the Death Anxiety Questionnaire (DAQ), a demographic questionnaire, and a set of open-ended questions. Findings indicate that mean scores on the subscales of the MBI-HSS ranged from the low to moderate range and that a strong positive correlation existed between death anxiety and the depersonalization subscale of the MBI. Three key themes emerged from the qualitative data: (a) personal interest in hospice social work developed through a variety of ways; (b) although death anxiety decreased from exposure and understanding of the death process, there was increased death anxiety surrounding working with certain patients; and (c) burnout was primarily related to workload or difficult cases.     

The Role of Residential and Nursing Homes in the Last Year of People's Lives

Dr Ann Cartwright, Institute for Social Studies in Medical Care, 14 South Hill Park, London NW3 2SB. Summary Almost a quarter of a random sample of adults dying in 1987had spent at least part of the last year of their lives in aresidential or nursing home; one in eight spent all of thatyear in one. The old, the unmarried, those with difficulty lookingafter themselves, the confused, the incontinent, the blind,the deaf, and the bad tempered were more likely to be in suchhomes than others. With their greater dependency, people living in residentialhomes received rather more consultations and home visits—althoughnot night calls—from their general practitioners. Butthey did not get more help from community nurses and they wereless likely to be admitted to, or to die in, a hospital or hospice. According to the assesments of relatives, friends, and neighbourswho answered the questions, the quality of life of people whohad been in a residential home for a year or more before theirdeath was similar to that of others who died but had never beenin such a home. It was those who were admitted in the year beforethey died who were perceived as having a relatively poor qualityof life in that year. Increasingly, the quality of life duringthe year before death is going to depend on the attributes ofresidential homes and their staff.     

汉晋至唐岳神司命信仰谳论

在民间信仰脉络中,先秦"泰山治鬼"说在汉代演化为泰山司命信仰,逮至晋唐,泰山主治生死的职能更为细化,形成以泰山神为首的地府衙署。作为岱宗,泰山司命信仰自然会影响五岳。东汉时泰山裁定生死的职能已投射到五岳。至唐代,岳神司命信仰流布更广,信仰内涵渐趋丰富,更多折射出世俗化的信仰诉求。与民间岳神司命信仰发展理路不同,汉唐道教将泰山治鬼说与道教神学思想结合并加以创发,道教岳神司命信仰由此别具特点,具体表现为泰山司命的重要标识——泰山死籍形成、岳神司命信仰与五岳真形图信仰、五岳真君信仰相融合。     

两晋南北朝列女事迹考

列女的本义是指众妇女。＂列女＂与＂烈女＂这两个词,在古代本来是通用的,都是指重义轻生而有节操的妇女。后来,随着封建社会的发展,儒家伦理道德的提倡,对妇女的束缚逐渐加深,就把不愿改嫁或被侵辱而殉身的女子称为＂烈女＂。这一＂烈女＂的含义,已与＂列女＂的本义大相径庭。两晋南北朝时期,由于妇女地位正处于变化之中,＂列女＂一词的含义已开始带有双重性质。但是,从使用的频率看,＂列女＂大大高于＂烈女＂,说明这一时期妇女受节烈的束缚还是比较少的。梳理两晋南北朝史籍中记载的妇女事迹,揭示当时士族妇女、庶族妇女与贫民妇女等民间妇女各阶层的基本生活面貌。     

A Multifactorial Approach to Predicting Death Anxiety: Assessing the Role of Religiosity,Susceptibility to Mortality Cues,and Individual Differences

Death anxiety is not only experienced by individuals receiving end-of-life care, but also by family members, social workers, and other service providers who support these individuals. Thus, identifying predictors of individual differences in experienced death anxiety levels may have both theoretical and clinical ramifications. The present study assessed the relative influence of religiosity, susceptibility to mortality cues, state and trait anxiety, and demographic factors in the experience of death anxiety through an online survey distributed to members of two online communities related to end-of-life care. Results indicated that cognitive and emotional susceptibility to mortality cues, as well as gender, predicted differences in death anxiety. Conversely, religiosity and age did not increase the predictive power of the model. Thus, death anxiety may be a function of emotional, cognitive, and sociocultural factors that interact in complex, but predictable, ways to modulate the response to mortality cues that occur in one’s life.     

Black-White Differentials in Adult Homicide Mortality in the United States

Objective . This article examines individual level black-white differences in adult homicide mortality. Homicide is a major social problem and a central cause of preventable death in the United States. A homicide not only claims one life prematurely but can also devastate a family, friends, and a neighboring community. Methods . We link eight consecutive years of the National Health Interview Survey (1987–94) to the Multiple Cause of Death file through the National Death Index (1987–97), and use Cox proportional hazard models to examine the role of social factors in black-white homicide mortality in the United States. Results . We find that individual level sociodemographic characteristics—age, sex, marital status, education, employment status, and geographic factors—explain almost 35 percent of the racial differences in homicide mortality. Conclusions . These results demonstrate the contributions that National Center for Health Statistics data can make to criminological literature and reveal the mechanisms through which blacks experience higher homicide mortality than whites. Such illumination may lead to a reduction in the fourth leading preventable cause of death in the United States.