Who owns our virtual legacy after we’re gone?

Death as ritual

Throughout history, cultures across the world have evolved their own particular practices to farewell the dead – from the mummification of bodies in ancient Egypt and the present Torajan region, to the Japanese Kotsuage and Indian open-air pyre cremation processes, to the sky burials in Tibet, sea burials in England and ground burials nearly everywhere.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander burials in the past often included favourite possessions of the deceased being placed alongside the body, which may have been in a sitting or lying position, in groups or alone.

The ceremonies and rituals that accompanied these practices provided some comfort to those left behind and were seen as respectful of the dead.

What McHugh has noticed recently, however, is that since the COVID-19 pandemic began, a lot of anger is being expressed by the bereaved, who have been unable to participate in the usual rituals of attending funerals or saying goodbye to their loved ones in person.

“Lots of medical personnel are having to take on roles that immediate family members used to do, such as arranging facetime phone calls with extended family or conveying personal messages, when the person dying is in isolation,” she said.

“This is distressing for them and the families and has led to an outpouring of grief on Twitter and other social media platforms, with messages like ‘XX is dead, wear your f---ing mask’.

“This has not happened previously; people used to be more respectful when notifying of a death – but now people seem to feel that the government has failed them, and they want to vent.

And it’s not just the messages placed on social media accounts: behaviours are changing too.

“Young people have been known to take funeral selfies or add the ‘F’ symbol to memorial sites, which could be seen as disrespectful by those unfamiliar with the reference,” McHugh said.

“But young people see it quite the opposite; they are sharing their grief and honouring the person who has passed away.

“Perhaps we need to have a collective discussion about what is most appropriate in these physically distanced times with so much communication occurring online.”

Death Positive movement

Much as the Body Positive and Me Too movements have helped people deal with subjects previously considered taboo, speaking about death before it happens – as Death Positive movement founder Caitlin Doughty advocates – may help us deal with some of its more confronting aspects.

“And it may help us explore new developments such as thanatechnology, natural burials and aquamation," McHugh said.

“The DeathTech Research Team in Melbourne has several ongoing projects including The Future Cemetery and Disposal of the Dead that explore emerging alternatives to traditional body disposal and the potential for new technologies to enhance the public’s experience of the cemetery.”

Still, talks of this type are not always easy, as McHugh well knows, despite researching death on a daily basis.

She copes by sharing her thoughts with others in the industry, whom she has found to have great respect for the deceased, and by being sensitive and respectful with others when the topic is raised. In particular, she is part of the Australian Death Studies Society and takes part in the Postgraduate Researcher Support Group provided by the Association for the Study of Death and Society.

“I was initially drawn to this field of research because I decided I should face my fears directly and see if I could improve things,” she said.

And with a background in information technology and digital scholarship, studying the impact of death on social media was a natural starting point.