Differences of mortality education between China and the West

張文煜 郭浩鵬

◆Abstract：Mortality education is ineluctable because only when we think of death can we learn how to live better. This paper will discuss the differences between Chinese and western education， focus on comparing the historical factors of the differences between Chinese and Western， so as to help integrate Chinese and western death education resources and experience eliminate the barriers between Chinese and western cultural exchanges.

1 Introduction

1.1 Background

In Chinese traditional concept， "death" is a very taboo word. When a child asks a question about death， parents often respond with fairytale-like stories or simply ignore them. Death is the inevitable end of life， and there is no escape for everyone. Our thinking of "death" is our grasp of "life". Thus， death education is ineluctable. Death education developed from the rise of thanatology. The concept of thanatology was first proposed by the Russian scientist Aleckchenko （1903）. He pointed out that enhanced research on "thanatology" and "gerontology" will help alleviate human suffering and thus improve people's quality of life （Aleckchenko，1903）. Roswell Park， an American professor， pointed out that the concept of "thanatology" has been around since the beginning of the 20th century （Park，1912）. The systematic and in-depth study of thanatology by professor Roswell Park in the United States began in the 1950s. In 1959， The Meaning of Death， regarded as the world's first and most representative work on thanatology， was published， marking the beginning and trend towards popularization of death education （Wu，2019）. Subsequently， since 1960， death education has been listed as a compulsory course in schools of all levels and types in America， which has become the focus of modern pedagogy in Europe and Japan. In the 1990s， death education was introduced into Taiwan and Hong Kong and gradually spread （Wu， 2019）. In recent years， China's aging population， rising rate of suicide among teenagers， lagging hospice care for patients， and the legitimacy of euthanasia have attracted increasing attention. It is only now that our country has become increasingly aware of the urgency of death education.

1.2 Significance

The significance of death education lies in that it will help individuals establish a scientific and healthy view of death and eliminate people's fear and anxiety about death， so as to assist individuals to establish a positive and optimistic outlook on life， cherish life， and eventually respect life（Fu， 2006）. This paper will discuss the differences between Chinese and western education， focus on comparing the historical factors of the differences between Chinese and Western， explore the conflicts between different civilizations and different nations so as to seek the unified stand of human beings on the equality and peace of life and reflect the influence of Chinese culture on the world culture from contradictions， so as to finally achieve the goal of helping to integrate Chinese and western death education resources and experience and eliminating the barriers between Chinese and western cultural exchanges..

2 Discussion

2.1 phenomenon

When it comes to disaster relief and respect for life， China and the West once again have disagreement on the "death or democracy" issue. When COVID-19 broke out in 2020， China first managed to limit the number of domestic infections to around 80，000 in just three months （NetEase News）. But in the west， some people have not only expressed great dissatisfaction with the government's call to wear a mask as the epidemic spirals out of control and the death toll rises， but have also accused China of "restricting human rights". In the face of death， Chinese and Western people show opposite attitudes. What we have to do is find out the causes of this kind of conflict.

2.2 reasons

Why are there such differences between China and the West closely related to the differences in the core dimensions of Chinese and Western history and culture.

‘In the first issue of Death Education in the United States in 1977， Dr. Newzeen analyzed that the rise of death education in the U.S. is not accidental， which is closely related to the value orientation that empathizes youth， achievement， health， individualism， self-control in American culture （Zheng，2000：42）. The rise of western civilization in the Renaissance and enlightenment period has been shrouded in the color of humanism. At that time， the core of ideological trend was to take people as the center advocates free and democratic thought， explore the meaning of humans in this life， and advocate the sacredness of private property. Therefore， after thousands of years of evolution， the west has always been ahead of the rest in the discussion of individual life， so it's franker to face the issue of death.

But Chinese education is different. As a matter of fact， ‘the life and death education in colleges and universities is carried out under the overall framework of moral education in colleges and universities at present. In particular， the education of life and death in Chinese colleges and universities is more named life education， less about death. China's life and death education is oriented by morality and ethics， so it pays more attention to issues related to life in content. Such as outlook on life， the value of life， the meaning of life， the relationship between man and society， the relationship between man and nature and so on.

View of traditional Chinese， with emphasis on "every hair and skin on body is given by the parents"， focuses on the social value of life pursuit， ignores the individual value of life and more attention to the value of individual life in collective life， which is advocated by todays collectivism view and the use of "cosmopolitism" in the world. Consequently， under the influence of such historical accumulation and social norms， the death education in modern China was not as open and developed as that in the west. However， in the cognition of Chinese traditional culture， there is also the awe of death and the emphasis on the continuation of national life. For example， in China's Tomb-sweeping Day， Cold Clothing Festival and other traditional festivals with the theme of communicating life and death and offering sacrifices to ancestors and ancestral temple culture， the existence and continued reproduction of life are also constantly being narrated.

3 Suggestions

In terms of education in the face of death， the West does have a more advancing understanding， but obviously， in this epidemic we have also seen that the west's calm and highly respected death and individualism cannot solve the problem in practice. Of course， the lack of death education in China also leads to many social problems， which still needs efforts to conquer.

While we should change the traditional taboo in death education， we should also spread the "cosmopolitism" and the collective view derived from it， and actively promote the peaceful and friendly exchange of Chinese and Western culture.

Academically， we should show our rich historical picture to the world， emphasizing that life and death and freedom are never binary opposition. On the contrary， survival and freedom support each other to form a complete life. Through the commemoration of ancestors and respect for life， death education should be performed， individual and group members should be continuously constructed， collective sense of belongings should be confirmed and the meaning of life existence should be conveyed and the core of love and respect inherited.

4 Conclusion

The view of death enables us to have a deeper understanding of the dialectical relationship between man and nature， between man and society， between man and others， and between man and himself， so as to better value individual life， respect the life of others， treat nature well， and create a harmonious and dynamic life relationship.

The history of Chinese and the Western concept of position and education level differs， even if it is caused by many aspects， but also due to the accumulation of the history we do not fully realize the development of harmonious and unified， but with the passage of time， the Chinese and Western cultural exchange grows， the improvement of China's international status， we believe China has the ability to improve its internal cultural level and make up for its shortcomings in education. At the same time， we can tell Chinese Stories well on the world stage and promote a positive outlook on life and death.

References

[1] Zhang， Shumei .‘The concept and implementation of life and death education for children，[兒童生死教育之理念與實施]， The study of information ，2001，6：31-39.

[2]Wu， Lei .‘A probe into the status and characteristics of life and death view education in the West， [西方生死觀教育開展狀況及特征探微]， Journal of Jiangxi Vocational and Technical College of Electricity ，2019，2（2）：95-96.

[3] Zheng， Xiaojiang . ‘Introduction to death education abroad， Teachers Expo， 2000，2： 42.

[4] Fu， Weixun . Dignity of death and dignity of life， [死亡的尊嚴與生命的尊嚴]， Beijing： Peking University Press.2000.