Undertakers

At the end of life when our physical body has to be disposed of, rituals have developed for those left behind. The caretakers of our remains and those who provide the ceremonies for the living in our society are the undertakers. What thoughts do you have after viewing the documentary entitled "The Undertakers"?

One of the most unenviable jobs in society has got to be that of an undertaker. Aside from the morose reality of dealing with dead bodies, the undertakers must also deal with the emotionally devastated loved ones of the deceased. I’m not sure which aspect of the profession would be the more difficult of the two. The average undertaker receives an annual salary of $34,690.00. This is not a great deal of money at all, which begs the question, why then do people choose to work in this profession?  In preparation for this assignment I looked for psychological research on workers in the undertaking industry. This appears to be a topic that has received only the slightest hint of investigation, and one I personally think bears further research.  The undertaking business depicted in the Frontline video was a multi-generational family run business. I imagine that family has continued on in the undertaking business mostly due to tradition. It takes a very strong person to choose to be involved in this profession. Though I consider myself a strong woman, I really can’t imagine myself working in this field, as it just seems it would be too depressing to deal with death on a regular basis. I am certainly thankful for those that do work in this field as it is necessary to our society.