Death Education in the United Kingdom

Abstract

This paper, which is in three parts, first surveys the development of some forms of informal death education in the United Kingdom since Gorer's (1965) post‐war survey of attitudes to death, grief and mourning. It notes how many of the responses made to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, are part of such developments. Next it shows how the media in particular, together with exhibitions, courses and reports, continue to contribute to the attainment of four goals originally applied to American Death Education: (1) informing of facts not currently widespread in society, (2) learning to deal with feelings about one's own death and the deaths of significant others, (3) becoming informed consumers of medical and funeral services, and (4) clarifying one's values on social and ethical issues. The paper concludes by outlining some choices and challenges that death and bereavement present using Buber's I‐‐Thou perspective.