Graveyards are a disgusting waste of space. Their existence communicates to society that many dead people are more entitled to space on this Earth than some living people will ever have.
I realize they’re not really for the dead, but the living decide that their dead bodies are entitled to more space than some living. Plots cost thousands of dollars. We ostracize the unhoused. Our priorities are broken, and graveyards are yet another thing for those “with” that those “without” will not have.
I don’t know. Personally I don’t need a “place” to go visit someone that is deceased, but I have very close family that needs that place in order to grieve. Pets or human family, they need to be buried and have a marker.
When I lived in a more urban environment the only way to achieve that was through graveyards/pet cemeteries. With some land and the option I’d rather bury people at home now, but lots of people don’t have that luxury, but still have the need to “visit” deceased loved ones, and know where they “are.”
I’m not one of those people, sounds like you aren’t either, but that doesn’t mean that a graveyard doesn’t serve a useful purpose for the majority of people.
Could they be more efficient? Sure, maybe. But honestly do they really take up THAT much space?
Definitely fits the unpopular opinion tag, but I think you’ve got some blinders on your empathy if you don’t see their value.
I understand the sentiment and yes, just like everything else, capitalism has turned death into a money making racket at the expense of the average person.
I live near a cemetery currently and was raised near a different one, they make great neighbors. Quiet and the one near me now is also a wildlife refuge so I can’t call that wasted space. Yes, it’s privately owned but it’s open to the public. Also, I work in historic preservation and love working in and exploring cemeteries.
In the end, I just love the blend of history, architecture, and nature in one place.
They exist for both relatives to mourn, and the wider populace who value the perspective on their own problems that graveyards provide. They’re also normally a peaceful place in an often unpeaceful world, much as urban green spaces.
When I was in unspecified foreign country I went to a graveyard with my family. It was very different in that the bodies were buried basically right next to each other and you basically just walk over the bodies of the interred to get to where you want to go.
It was a bit distinct from how we do it in America where, much like our suburban houses, you have to have a pointless giant green lawn surrounding where the body is buried.
I’m going to push back because as society exists now there are a lot of cities I have been to where the graveyard is the most easily accessible green space. I don’t know how weird it may be but sitting with the dead in the quite separated from the surroundings was one of my favorite things to experience. I’m not a religious/spiritual person and it was very helpful in connecting to the people who died before I met them.
Tradition means giving votes to the most obscure of all classes — our ancestors. It is the democracy of the dead. Tradition refuses to submit to the small and arrogant oligarchy of those who merely happen to be walking around.
– G.K. Chesterton
Graveyards are a disgusting waste of space. Their existence communicates to society that many dead people are more entitled to space on this Earth than some living people will ever have.
From everything I read in this thread… you won.
Graveyards don’t exist for the dead, they are a place where living people can mourn the loss of the dead person and remember older days.
I realize they’re not really for the dead, but the living decide that their dead bodies are entitled to more space than some living. Plots cost thousands of dollars. We ostracize the unhoused. Our priorities are broken, and graveyards are yet another thing for those “with” that those “without” will not have.
I don’t know. Personally I don’t need a “place” to go visit someone that is deceased, but I have very close family that needs that place in order to grieve. Pets or human family, they need to be buried and have a marker.
When I lived in a more urban environment the only way to achieve that was through graveyards/pet cemeteries. With some land and the option I’d rather bury people at home now, but lots of people don’t have that luxury, but still have the need to “visit” deceased loved ones, and know where they “are.”
I’m not one of those people, sounds like you aren’t either, but that doesn’t mean that a graveyard doesn’t serve a useful purpose for the majority of people.
Could they be more efficient? Sure, maybe. But honestly do they really take up THAT much space?
Definitely fits the unpopular opinion tag, but I think you’ve got some blinders on your empathy if you don’t see their value.
I understand the sentiment and yes, just like everything else, capitalism has turned death into a money making racket at the expense of the average person.
I live near a cemetery currently and was raised near a different one, they make great neighbors. Quiet and the one near me now is also a wildlife refuge so I can’t call that wasted space. Yes, it’s privately owned but it’s open to the public. Also, I work in historic preservation and love working in and exploring cemeteries.
In the end, I just love the blend of history, architecture, and nature in one place.
Not many of the living are entitled to less than 2 m² though. I’m not sure where you’re trying to go with this.
Graveyards don’t exist for the dead.
They exist for both relatives to mourn, and the wider populace who value the perspective on their own problems that graveyards provide. They’re also normally a peaceful place in an often unpeaceful world, much as urban green spaces.
When I was in unspecified foreign country I went to a graveyard with my family. It was very different in that the bodies were buried basically right next to each other and you basically just walk over the bodies of the interred to get to where you want to go.
It was a bit distinct from how we do it in America where, much like our suburban houses, you have to have a pointless giant green lawn surrounding where the body is buried.
I’m going to push back because as society exists now there are a lot of cities I have been to where the graveyard is the most easily accessible green space. I don’t know how weird it may be but sitting with the dead in the quite separated from the surroundings was one of my favorite things to experience. I’m not a religious/spiritual person and it was very helpful in connecting to the people who died before I met them.