Facing Death, Facing Oneself

Facing Death, Facing Ourselves: An Exploration on Living explores what different traditions, mythologies, religions, and academic disciplines have to suggest about what facing death teaches us about living and ourselves. The text employs scholarly depth, breadth, and rigor to explore ethical and human questions as well as philosophic concepts pertaining to life, death, and dying. 

In Section I, readers are introduced to the themes of the book and, in particular, to how the process of coming to honestly know oneself is critical to one’s personal attitudes toward death, dying, and happiness. Section II examines grief and physical death through discussion of works and theories by Tolstoy, Kramer, and Scarry, as well as the topics of anger, depression, suicide, and forgiveness. In Section III, readers explore the concepts of faith, religion, and spirituality in relation to death through diverse, global media. The final section, utilizing the thought of Emmanuel Levinas, explores how the capacity to love is essential to a rich and meaningful life. The text features real-life stories, viewing guides to engaging films, and an interactive grief exercise to enrich the learning experience. 

Facing Death, Facing Ourselves is an ideal resource for courses on death and dying, psychology, philosophy, and theology.

Francis D. Degnin is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Northern Iowa, where he teaches courses in biomedical ethics, perspectives on death and dying, and philosophy. He holds doctoral and master’s degrees in philosophy from Vanderbilt University, a master’s in philosophy from Villanova University, and a master’s in pastoral ministry from Seattle University. No stranger to illness or death, Dr. Degnin serves as both an ethics consultant and a night chaplain for local hospitals. His research and teaching interests include medical and clinical ethics, humanities, death and dying, continental philosophy, phenomenology, and social and political philosophy.