Aesthetics and the Containment of Grief

My point of departure is the observation that people ubiquitously turn to aesthetic practices in response to the loss of a loved one. I argue that profound loss catapults the bereaved person into an alternate “world” that differs in marked ways from the world we usually occupy, an alternate world lacking even the basic coherence we need to function. Aesthetic practices facilitate restoration of coherence to our experience, as well as reconnection with the social world and recovery from the breakdown that profound loss involves. While the aesthetic notion of closure is frequently invoked in connection with the needs of the bereaved, I suggest that while containing the emotions experienced in connection with loss is vital if they are to be processed, unrealistic aspirations toward closure can encourage expectations that harm the bereaved. By contrast, I suggest that the aims of aesthetically punctuating experience and communicating through aesthetic gestures are beneficial for helping the bereaved adjust to their new circumstances.     

CONVERSATIONAL DEVIANCE: A STRUCTURAL MODEL

Expectation violations are common interpersonal communication occurrences. A prerequisite of communication competence then is the ability to deal effectively with the unexpected in conversation. A structural model of existing relationships among variables considered important to children's ability to handle conversational deviance, specifically three successive turn-taking violations, was proposed and tested in this investigation. Children ranging in age from 3 years, 5 months to 11 years, 5 months served as subjects. Results of the study suggest that cognitive complexity plays an influential role in the development of children's ability to provide accounts for conversational deviance as well as the ability to provide alternative strategies for the completion of conversations disrupted by improper turn-taking. Social perspective-taking and communication adaptation ability appear to play less significant roles.