From the 1990s the British developed an interest in
natural burial, also known as woodland, green, or ecological burial. Natural
burial constitutes part of a long, historical legacy for British funeral
innovation; from Victorian cemetery monuments and garden cemeteries through the
birth and rise of cremation to the many things done with cremated remains. The
book sets natural burial in the context of such creative dealing with death,
grief, mourning, and the celebration of life. Themes from sociology and
anthropology combine with psychological issues and theological ideas to show
how human emotions take shape and help people consider their own death whilst
also dealing with the death of those they love.
The authors explore the variety of motivations for
people to engage with natural burial and its popular appeal, using interviews
with people having a relationship with one natural burial site created by the
Church of England but open to all. They illustrate people's understandings of
life and death in the sacred, secular and mixed worlds of modern Britain.