African Burials in South Carolina (Essay Sample)

African Burials in South Carolina Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation African Burials in South Carolina Introduction Death is an unavoidable circumstance in the world. The changing practices and traditions that people attach to death depend on the culture and origin of their beliefs. The African Americans in South Carolina consisted of different groups of individuals within the African landscape. Moreover, the African Americans also believed in the fact that the dead deserve decent burial and appropriate mourning. The mortuary practices and other ideas about the dead define how best the African Americans could be defined regarding their burial practices in South Carolina. Since they were from diversified in their origins, they had significant contributions to the issues that affected their wellbeing regarding traditional practices. However, the African American practices in South Carolina have distinct patterns associated with decoration of the graves and the circularity in the present cultures. According to the grave decoration perspective, it was relevant to assert that different groups had various concerns relating to how well they viewed the deceased. For instance, the dead person was accorded an aspect of respect depending on the manner in which they were laid to rest (Juang, & Morrissette, 2008). The grave also had a significant meaning in South Carolina depending on the affected community. The grave was a central determinant of key issues in South Carolina. The grave was powerful and determined the next life that the dead would take after their transition in life. The decoration and the items placed on the grave determined the view of several issues that affected the culture of the people. For instance, the African Americans practised the culture of placing designated objects on top of the grave to prevent the spirit of the dead from engaging and looking for things to the land of the living. Moreover, the decoration of the graves and placing of items signified the needs of the dead. For instance, they believed that such issues helped in the transition from the world of the living to the world of the dead which was considered as the afterlife. There were also some practices that were done with the aim of preventing the spirit from tormenting the community and the family of the dead. For example, the passing of the children under and above the casket signified that the spirit of the dead was being appeased so that it might face the world of the dead without having the influence of the living. The blue shell-edged plate found in the African American graves was one of the significant marks of their traditional practices (Megginson, 2006). Moreover, it was assumed that the African Americans in South Carolina performed these practices without being aware of their special meanings and what they implied on the dead. The idea of circularity is another issue that has been discussed in relevance to the issues that affected the African Americans in the South Carolinas scope practices and their burial ceremonies. The combination of the African American believes, and the Christian systems defined the manner in which they combined the two ideas (Knoblock, 2016). For instance, the use of the cross was a significant element during the burial practices among the African Americans in South Carolina. Moreover, they also believed that those who lived a good life had high chances of proceeding wit...