Caution: Morbid post to follow...

[s1obhan]

I have a friend who died suddenly two years ago. Immediately after his death, his Facebook profile turned into an area where people went to announce his funeral arrangements, to express to him how much he's missed, and even to wish him a happy birthday every year. On occasion, I'll visit his profile to see what people have recently written on his

Comments

[s1obhan]

I totally agree with you. I think it really depends on the person who is grieving and what they are comfortable with. And just because these options are out there doesn't mean you have to use them or that your grieving will pass more quickly because of them. I think it's just another way to do what we've been doing all along in these situations (which actually leads to waysofseeing's comment below).

I do wonder if it makes it easier for some people to openly grieve who would not normally. For example, I am a person who likes to bottle up my emotions. Perhaps having an option to share my personal thoughts or emotions from my laptop may make it easier for me to let out my emotions that would otherwise be swallowed. (I guess that's also the reason why blogs are so popular.)

And this brings me to another thought, has technology changed the way we handle tragedy? You gave the example that people would email you to ask what happened to your friend via the online obituary. If that was not there, how would they have found out? What media would be involved? I think technology has also changed what is socially acceptable to do in these situations as well. For instance, is it appropriate to announce your boyfriend's death through an away message? Some would say sure, because it's just another way to quickly get the word out to his family and friends. Others would argue that it is insensitive and inappropriate. As technology evolves, our social etiquette needs to evolve too; however, I think there is a lag between these evolutions.