Week 8 Journal

No matter how you may look at them, tombstones are, in fact, a piece of everyday writing, as they may contain rhetorical elements and communicate a message toward others (Primarily the living). Tombstones are also a public entity, as they can be found in large numbers throughout almost every major town or city. This publicity helps aid in the stones sending their message to a large audience, which is the living. Though all tombstones are aimed toward specific members of the audience, such as family and friends of the deceased individual, the public location of the stone allows anyone to lay eyes on it. According to Richard Morris's essay, "Death on Display", tombstones may be used for a variety of purposes, such as remembering a loved one or to remind the living that our permanent home is not here on Earth, or even both. Tombstones can serve as a crucial reminder to the living that death is, in fact, real, and we must embrace its reality, for it is a concept that is easily overlooked in society today (that is, until it takes one of our very own). tombstones can also signify the beauty of nature and stabilize a connection between the dead and the living, as certain aspects of the stones can signify meaning. All in all, each gravestone is different in its own way, rehearsing cultural lessons which radiate in multiple directions. Its just a matter of whether or not a gravestone catches the eye of a certain part of the overall audience or not. Either way, Tombstones aren't going anywhere, as they are located in a specific location and will stay in said location to commemorate our loved ones, or remind us of the overall sanctity of life and nature.

Week 8 Journal

What does Morris and tombstones contribute to our understanding of everyday writing?

All throughout the piece, Morris mentions the impact that location, purpose and audience have on the effect that a death display has. For example, he described three different types of cemeteries: the garden display, the lawn cemetery, and the memento mori gravescapes. Each one of these very diverse burying sites have different impacts because of the design and nature of the tombstones that are placed within the confines of them. While the garden display graves focus on nature and beauty, the lawn cemeteries focus on efficiency and homogeneous graves, and the memento mori present short reminders of death along with a decaying appearance and gloomy feel. If tombstones from these sites were to be switched in regards to location, they would not seem to belong and would hold a different meaning. We have come to know this in class because of our knowledge of locations' influence on conveying a message. In addition, Morris also mentioned that in some cases, the designers of the death displays would incorporate eye-catching structures, large displays or gates to differentiate themselves from the graves that surround the specific deceased individual whom these displays are built for. However, because of their sometimes ostentatious displays, one can infer that the audience intended for this everyday text differs from the audience of a simple plaque that is level to the ground and is not meant to attract attention. Perhaps in this case the audience would depend upon the way that the death display is made and how much attention it is expected to get. This is closely associated with purpose in that what is written and displayed, and where it is placed depending upon this content, gives the audience insight into the message that was intended to be conveyed to others, and also whom the message was meant for. If there is a short and ambiguous phrase printed on a tombstone, the message is most likely for the general audience who need not know anything about this person, and therefore the purpose is not so much centered around the person but on death itself. If there is an explanation of death or a noted  accomplishment made in the deceased honor, then most likely the purpose is to bring attention away from the idea of death and instead back to the moments when that person was alive.

In these ways, Morris and tombstones contributes to our understanding of everyday writing because it gives us further confirmation as to what we have continuously been exposed to through the readings and discussions that we have for class; the impact of things such as location, audience and purpose on the effect of an everyday text, in this case, tombstones. 

Week 8 Journal

Week 8

Morris explains how there is a cultural and rhetorical significance in the practice of commemorating the dead by using tombstones. Graveyards are a “convenient place to dispose of the dead” according to Morris, but there is a deeper purpose behind identifying each grave with a unique tombstone and grave site. Additionally, there is something to be said of the decaying conditions of graveyards and the effort taken to separate the grave site from the outside world. Grave sites are memorials that speak to visitors a singular purpose, a tradition of dedicating and memorializing our lost loved ones. In this way, tombstones are everyday writing. Everyday writing serves a purpose that is specific to the rhetor and the audience. In this case, the audience is the loved ones and rhetor is creator of the tombstone, all with the same purpose in mind to remember the dead. Furthermore, Graveyards are a common site. Almost every town has one by default.  Morris goes on to explain the manifestation and purpose of grave sites and their significance in respect to the iconography, mottos, and inscriptions. Special attention is made to the significance of time and identify. The two most important elements of a tombstone are the name which identifies the body and the years that define the life. The years can be taken into account to postulate what the person’s life was like and generate many questions. Did the purpose live a long life? Did they die young? Are they buried with family members? Were they a military veteran? How did they die? All of these important questions stem from simply observing the grave site and taking note to any and all inscriptions and symbols included. Tombstones limit the message that can be delivered due to space, thus special attention must be made to what was deemed important enough to include on the headstone. Burial sites are an important aspect of any culture and vary greatly from culture to culture. By utilizing the space provided on the tombstone, one can successfully commemorate a loved one and send a message that fulfills the purpose of paying respects to the dead. 

Week 8 journal

What does Morris and tombstones contribute to our understanding of everyday writing?

In class, we have depicted the meaning of everday writing. It consists of thoughts and ideas that are either publicly or privately shown to a certain group of people. After reading Morris’s article I think it is safe to say that tombstones can be added to our list of what we consider to be a form of everyday writing. When we discussed graffiti and tattoos in class, we discussed that the certain symbols displayed that have a certain meaning to the artists, were considered a form of everyday writing. The same thing goes for tombstones, as Morris discusses, which sometimes have symbols such as skulls on them. Although the public might not understand the meaning of the symbols, they have a deeper meaning to the certain group of people who knew the person who died. 

Although some type of artist created whatever was on the tombstone, I would still consider the artist the family member/friend who is having it created. Although the actual artist is carving it, the actual companion was the one who came up with the ideas, just as we discussed with tattoos. Another way tombstones contriube to our understanding of everyday writing is because of the audience. Although it’s available to the public to see, its really meant and will only be understood by a certain group of people. 

Week 8 Journal

What does Morris and tombstones contribute to our understanding of everyday writing?

Morris contributes to our understanding of everyday writing because he divulges to us how tombstones connect the living and the dead through rhetoric. In his essay on graves, he speaks specifically about the communication that they offer to the living and about the constant reminders of how the people lying underneath the tombstone should be remembered. This consistency is a daily, everyday reminder to those who visit the graveyard that their loved ones lay there. This allows the reader of the tombstone to connect to the tombstone in a very real and very everyday (from what we've defined in class) way.

Tombstones are public, whether families and individuals want them to be or not. This creates a public communication between people who visit cemeteries and the people who created the tombstones for their loved ones who've passed. From what Morris says, the living (i.e. those who are viewers), in essence, then can respond to what is written on the tombstone, whether the tombstone says death should be praised or whether we should take each day and live it to the fullest. Tombstones then can become everyday to those who experience these emotions because they pass onto others the experiences they've had.

The original communication here is between the viewer and the rhetor of the tombstone. It initiates the same kind of rhetorical situation that a zine or a scrapbook has. It creates the situation for one to pass on their memories or their ideas to others, creating an everlasting loop of communication. And in some ways this becomes someone's family history or it becomes a culture to those involved with the communication about the tombstone. This situation obviously being the remembering of someone's death. The tombstone and it's rhetor establish patterns of communication that can last for generations.

Week 8 journal

I think Morris's article offers a unique addition to our understanding of everyday writing. For me it doesn't seem correct to add gravestones and cemeteries to our definition. Morris often mentions the rhetorical situation of a grave stone, similar to a piece of everyday writing. Morris tells us that certain cemeteries were set up as a reminder that our time here on earth is short and it is not where humans plan to stay. While to some cemeteries served as a reminder of death but to others they serve as a message of something better waiting in the afterlife and a reason to live every day to the fullest. Morris also mentions certain symbols that also can serve as reminders of foreseeable death. such as skull and cross bones. Grave stones have an audience and often a rhetorical situation. But most of his assertions are based off historical facts, many thing have changed now. While gravestones still can serve as a memory of a person for loved ones, they are no longer very public. Graveyards are no longer located at the center of town in most places therefore their purpose of reminding the general public of death is no longer very applicable. Also I have not seen many large artistic statues in graveyards anymore, which could discount Morris' claim that they serve as a message to the public. Many of the practices he references are nearly obsolete in modern society.

Death on Display Journal

     When we think of "everyday writing" we have already established that it is one's own personal reflections that may or may not be circulated to the public. Everyday writing is a group of ideas that are communicated to a certain audience, whether it is oneself or a group. We have also established that scrapbooks, letters, and even tattoos are elements of everyday writing. It would only make sense that a graveyard tombstone is evidence as well.
     Tombstones are traditional and cultural aspects that help future generations know about their ancestors. Like print text, each tombstone is original and unique to the deceased person. Each culture, religion, or even family may have one certain element that is apparent on all tombstones. This makes them part of a certain community. Tattoos are a mark on a person's body as tombstones are a mark on a person's life.
     Called "gravescapes" in the text, these memorials "unravel patterns of communication" and "are sacred symbols that reflect both the living and the dead." Historically, graveyards were put in centralized locations, such as community centers, where regular spectators would see them on a consistent basis. This is a very helpful way to 'circulate' the text.
     Tombstones contribute a lot to everyday writing. They help us understand the past. Like the case studies we will be dealing with, tombstones allow for a deeper understanding of a family. For example, in my family, each tombstone has a family crest symbol on it that has been going on for centuries. They are definitely worth looking into and I feel as if one could learn a lot from one tombstone.