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        Stillbirth and loss : family practices and display

        Author
        Murphy, Samantha
        Thomas, Hilary
        Attention
        2299/11095
        Abstract
        This paper explores how parents respond to their memories of their stillborn child over the years following their loss. When people die after living for several years or more, their family and friends have the residual traces of a life lived as a basis for an identity that may be remembered over a sustained period of time. For the parent of a stillborn child there is no such basis and the claim for a continuing social identity for their son or daughter is precarious. Drawing on interviews with the parents of 22 stillborn children, this paper explores the identity work performed by parents concerned to create a lasting and meaningful identity for their child and to include him or her in their families after death. The paper draws on Finch’s (2007) concept of family display and Walter's (1999) thesis that links continue to exist between the living and the dead over a continued period. The paper argues that evidence from the experience of stillbirth suggests that there is scope for development for both theoretical frameworks.
        Publication date
        2013-02
        Published in
        Sociological Research Online
        Published version
        https://doi.org/10.5153/sro.2889
        Other links
        http://hdl.handle.net/2299/11095
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