All posts tagged: grief

Benedict Cumberbatch in Grief Drama

Benedict Cumberbatch in Grief Drama

Published by skeptic

While many films have conjured terrifying physical manifestations of grief, one that set a notably high bar for hand-crafted horror exploring that fecund strand was Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook. The specter of that brutally effective 2014 shocker proves inescapable for writer-director Dylan Southern in The Thing With Feathers, right down to a malevolent figure haunting the main characters that looks like something out of Edward Gorey. The main salvation is the staggering commitment of Benedict Cumberbatch, hurling himself into the role of a bereaved husband in a performance touched by madness that holds nothing back. His wounds are gashes continually being reopened. The source material is Max Porter’s prize-winning 2015 novella Grief Is the Thing With Feathers, which yielded a solo stage piece three years later seen on both sides of the Atlantic, adapted and directed by Irish playwright Enda Walsh and starring a protean Cillian Murphy. The book is a short but densely packed experiment in polyphonic literature, defying categorization with its stylized mix of prose, verse, essays, jokes and fable. Such a linguistically …

How Did Victorian Fashion Show Grief Through Clothes?

How Did Victorian Fashion Show Grief Through Clothes?

Published by skeptic

  Victorian fashion became notorious for its mourning etiquette, which included elaborate rituals, strict dressing rules, and clear social expectations. Partly, they were inspired by the mourning of Queen Victoria, who grieved over her husband for forty years. Victorian mourning had several stages of grief that were marked by the specific dress codes that regulated every detail of women’s costumes, from dresses to pins. Read on to learn more about Victorian fashion rules regarding death and mourning.   Victorian Fashion Stereotypes: How Mourning Attire Symbolized a Whole Era Portrait of Queen Victoria, photographed by Charles Clifford, 1861. Source: National Portrait Gallery, London   The Victorian period, which corresponded with the reign of the British Queen Victoria, lasted more than six decades. The Victorian era was diverse and aesthetically rich, yet it had one distinct element to it that profoundly marked most of it even outside of the British Empire. Mourning fashion and etiquette have existed (and still exist) for millennia, varying from culture to culture, yet in the Victorian-era West it reached its remarkable and …

A Mesmerizing Tale of Grief and Hope

A Mesmerizing Tale of Grief and Hope

Published by skeptic

In her latest novel “After Life,” acclaimed author Gayle Forman ventures into new territory, blending contemporary young adult fiction with elements of magical realism to create a profound meditation on grief, memory, and the complexities of human connection. Known for emotionally resonant works like “If I Stay” and “I Was Here,” Forman once again demonstrates her masterful ability to navigate difficult themes while maintaining a delicate balance between heartbreak and hope. The story centers on Amber Crane, who returns home one spring afternoon, seven years after her death in a bicycle accident. What follows is not just a tale of resurrection, but a deeply layered exploration of how death ripples through a community, reshaping relationships and forcing confrontations with uncomfortable truths. Narrative Structure & Storytelling Forman employs a sophisticated narrative structure, alternating between Amber’s present-day perspective and flashbacks from various characters’ points of view. These shifting timelines and viewpoints create a rich tapestry that reveals how a single life – and death – can impact countless others in unexpected ways. The author’s decision to tell …

Killer whale Tahlequah who carried dead calf in ‘show of grief’ gives birth again

Killer whale Tahlequah who carried dead calf in ‘show of grief’ gives birth again

Published by Sam

A killer whale mother who carried her dead calf for 17 days in an apparent show of grief has given birth to a new calf, scientists have said. The orca, named Tahlequah and known to researchers as J35, had carried her dead infant for more than 1,000 miles in 2018. But last Friday the whale was spotted travelling with a new calf in the Puget Sound waterway off the coast of Washington State, according to the Center for Whale Research. In a Facebook post, it said a team of researchers had been able to observe the calf and confirm it is female, giving it the name J61. But it said the team was concerned about the calf’s health “based on the behaviour of both J35 and J61”. “Early life is always dangerous for new calves, with a very high mortality rate in the first year,” the centre said. “J35 is an experienced mother, and we hope that she is able to keep J61 alive through these difficult early days.” In a post on X, the …

I’m a Celebrity viewers want Barry McGuigan to win the show after ‘brave’ chat about grief

I’m a Celebrity viewers want Barry McGuigan to win the show after ‘brave’ chat about grief

Published by skeptic

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails I’m a Celebrity star Barry McGuigan has become a favourite to win after viewers praised his openness in talking about the death of his daughter. The 63-year-old former boxing champion is one of a handful of celebrities who entered the Australian jungle over the weekend, to take part in a series of gruelling challenges. While the show’s launch saw the stars drink gruesome cocktails and skydive out of helicopters, the latest episode saw more reflective conversations taking place as the group bonded. “I used to go to church a lot but after my daughter… you know, not so much,” the former boxer replied to Irish radio presenter Dean McCullough who asked if McGuigan went to church. “She had leukaemia, when I was making The Boxer with Daniel Day-Lewis, three weeks from the end I had to leave because she’d been …

Liam Payne: Grief as picture begins to emerge of singer’s final hours | Ents & Arts News

Liam Payne: Grief as picture begins to emerge of singer’s final hours | Ents & Arts News

Published by skeptic

The third floor room at the Casa Sur hotel where Liam Payne was staying is now sealed off with police tape. Hotel guests walk up and down the corridor but a police officer is on guard to ensure nobody interferes with what is still the scene of an active investigation. How and why did the One Direction star plummet to his death from the balcony of this room and was there any third-party involvement? A 911 emergency call has already been leaked in which a hotel worker expresses concern for a guest who he believes to be under the influence of drugs and alcohol. It is part of a stark picture emerging of the 31-year-old’s final hours. Image: Fans of Payne mourn his death in Argentina. Pic: AP Read more: Former One Direction star Harry Styles pays tribute to Liam PayneLiam Payne’s close friend reveals final messages to her Sky News has seen police images from inside the room which authorities say was completely trashed. The pictures show a TV screen smashed, unknown white substances …

‘Why Us?’: A Tide of Grief in Lebanon

‘Why Us?’: A Tide of Grief in Lebanon

Published by Sam

Many of those killed in the strike had fled other parts of southern Lebanon over the past week, following Israeli evacuation orders, and sought refuge in relatives’ homes in Sidon, according to the relatives and their neighbors. Narmin Jradi, 20, who had been planning her wedding, was on the ground floor when she died. Majid and Malek Hannach, were rambunctious siblings, 12 and 13. Mohammad Hannach, 18, from Nabatieh, had been worried about whether the war would disrupt his plans to study engineering at a university next year. Source link

Godless Grief – TheHumanist.com

Godless Grief – TheHumanist.com

Published by skeptic

When a little seven year old girl throws herself into your arms and wails, “Will I ever see my Oskar (the family’s recently deceased Schnauzer) again?”, how is an agnostic atheist Grief Counselor meant to respond? Is it dishonest to say, “I don’t know, sweetheart, perhaps.”? I don’t think so. Or indeed when an elderly gentleman, grieving over the recent loss of his wife of fifty years, asks, “Will she be waiting for me when my time comes?”, do you say, “Don’t talk rubbish.”? Of course not. All I ever say is, “I don’t know”—there’s no need to add, “but personally, I don’t think so.” Curiously, very few clients feel the need to push the issue much further. They know that it’s an unanswerable question and I suspect that most people here in the US also assume that I share their various theistic beliefs (which I don’t). As a Grief Counselor, I am confronted on an almost daily basis with these kinds of questions. Questions relating to heaven, hell, ghosts, angels, the soul, and some …

The Harmful Effects of Unresolved Grief

The Harmful Effects of Unresolved Grief

Published by skeptic

Loss is an integral part of the human experience and grieving is a complex, highly individualized process. Before discussing some practical strategies to help process grief, I’d like to describe my own grief journey that inspired this topic. N of 1 Like many of you, I have experienced a significant amount of loss in my lifetime. In addition to past grief, within the last few years, my dad died, I tragically lost my nephew who I was very close to, my brother died after a lengthy battle with cancer, I lost a beloved pet dog, and I got divorced. With all that loss, it was the divorce that affected me most, which made me wonder why. During the time of my divorce, I developed some significant unexplained back pain. I was in so much pain I had difficulty walking and I ended up in the emergency room where an MRI revealed several bulged discs on both sides of my spine. I felt physically and emotionally crushed. Such an intense physical response to loss is not …

Self-forgiveness is more than self-comfort − a philosopher explains

Self-forgiveness is more than self-comfort − a philosopher explains

Published by skeptic

(The Conversation) — As the Jewish High Holidays approach, which begin with Rosh Hashanah and continue with Yom Kippur, the theme of forgiveness keeps coming to my mind. The 10 days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur are referred to in the Jewish tradition as the days of repentance, or the days of awe. During this period, Jews who observe the holidays implore God to respond to their sins with mercy, while also requesting forgiveness from anyone those individuals may have wronged in the past year. Most conversations about forgiveness focus on the meaning and value of forgiving others. Douglas Stewart, a philosopher of education who has researched forgiveness extensively, writes that to forgive implies a willingness to let go of our negative emotions or hard feelings and to adopt in their place a more generous and compassionate attitude toward our wrongdoers. Other philosophers have pointed out that the benefits of forgiveness include overcoming resentment, restoring relationships and setting a wrong to rest in the past – without vengeance. As such, to forgive should be …