SOCIAL BODIES: BODYWRITING EXERCISE:
WEEK 13 THE DEAD BODY:
BY ASHLEY BOWDEN 11416500
The subject of the ‘dead’ body that the weekly topic and readings relate to has had a deep
impact on me. The readings expanded my understanding of the process of death on not only
the body but the perception of the body by others through organ donation. Through the
readings I was immediately reminded of popular television show Grey’s Anatomy, more
specifically episode 3 in season 1 called “Winning a battle, losing a war”. Although there are
many episodes that have a direct link to death, organ donation and transplantation it is this
episode I believe to be highly relevant as it deals with the lived and embodied ‘dead’ body
concept from the viewpoint of the doctor, the recipient and the organ donors family. The
three key beliefs surrounding the sense of self in relation to the dead body, which are the
“medical/dualistic” nature of identity and self, the “non-medical/ holistic” nature and “body
immortality” (Haddow, 2005, pg 105) are highly evident to the audience as they witness the
events unfold. It was from this visual representation that I gained an enlightened knowledge
and understanding of the body through death and organ donation.
The belief of the body to exist in a hybridised state with the ‘self’ stems from Descartes’
theory of the ‘absent body’ in relation to the self and sense of identity. “One’s sense of
identity is a matter of mind, a core self that continues essentially the same over time,
regardless of physical interventions into the body.” (Shildrick, 2009, pg 36) Although in
today’s era there is a much stronger belief in the importance of the body and the role it
plays in one’s own view of the self, Doctors and medical professionals prefer to promote the
dualistic perspective in their approach to encouraging organ donation.
This dualistic promotion is seen in the mentioned episode of Grey’s Anatomy. A man in an
accident has suffered brain death (Brain Stem Death or BSD) which is described as the
damage of the brain stem resulting in the inability for information to be exchanged between
the brain and the body (Haddow, 2005, pg 94). The doctors in the show encourage the wife
of the man to donate his organs as they have a viable match that will undoubtedly die
without them. When asking her to donate the doctors took a medical standpoint and
emphasised the impact the ‘gift’ of organ donation would have on the recipient’s life. “The
term ‘gift of life’ is routinely used as the dominant metaphor in Anglo-American transplant
clinics” (Shildrick, 2009, pg 37). This referral to organ donation as a gift contradicts the
typical medical view of the body as being seen and described as more of a mechanical being.
An example of this is the metaphorical heart as a pump which “reinforces the image of the
heart as a machine” (Shildrick, 2009, pg 36). As I have come to understand, the
contradictory beliefs of the ‘gift’ of the organ and the ‘immensely valuable and reusable
spare part’ (Shildrick, 2009, pg35) is that of the individual or ‘self’ that believes them and to
what extent. From watching the episode of Grey’s anatomy I have concluded that although
the medical perspective of the body is separate from the sense of self identity it can also be
said to be intertwined through the promotion of the ‘gift’. The two notions co-exist within
the dualistic nature of self which thus makes it easier for families to agree to donate a loved
one’s organs, as is the case in Grey’s Anatomy.
To support this statement an example from the reading by Haddow is highly relevant. An
interviewee states;
“Well, what’s the use to her [laugh]. That’s basically the idea behind it, as they say,
‘they can’t take it with you’ so might as well use them. I mean it’s a body. It’s not
really a person that you grew up with or anything like that.”(2005, pg 103)
This deliberate detachment is a significant trait among of those families that follow
Descartes pattern of thinking. Another interviewee stated that
“somebody that is brain dead, whatever, is just like a broken car. A broken car itself
is not going to be of use, but you can cannibalise the parts for something else.”
(Haddow, 2005, pg 102)
This metaphor of the broken car is an effective example of how families of a dualistic self
belief see the deceased loved one whose organs they choose to donate. It is this metaphoric
belief that medical practitioners emphasise when encouraging organ donation in patients
and this was evident in the Grey’s Anatomy television show. The donor’s wife was originally
of a holistic mindset but eventually agreed to donate her husband’s organs as she could see
that through giving the ‘gift’ of his organs, her husband lived on in another life. “The organs
can serve a purpose only in this life, demonstrating that the body and the self are no longer
one and the same (Haddow, 2005, pg 103).
The holistic beliefs of self identity refers to that of Merleau-Ponty’s work on the ‘lived body’,
a body is only that of the experiences it has lived. This belief goes for members of an
individual’s family also. The body of a ‘self’ is what visually defines it and so a greater
emphasis is put onto the body, it becomes inextricably intertwined with the self. This
inextricable link between the body and the self is the major reason for many people who
decide against organ donation for themselves or a loved one. “Demand continues to
outstrip supply” (Haddow, 2005, pg 93) Distraught family members can sometimes struggle
to distinguish the difference between that of a dead and a live body. Although they
understand their loved one is dead, the self that the family member identifies with is still
within and inseparable from the body, as the following quote supports, “The living body is
the tangible concrete expression, or manifestation, of individual identity. These terms share
a common phenomenological approach to the individual’s lived experience of embodiment”
(Haddow, 2005, pg 98).
As stated by Haddow, the family of the deceased find it hard when there is no distinct
‘moment of death’ in BSD, the patient being described as ‘almost alive’ (Haddow, 2005, pg
101). Interestingly however eight of the families interviewed in the readings knew what
Brain Stem death was due to television programs such as ER and Casualty (Haddow, 2005,
pg 100). Although television shows enabled understanding of the events occurring they did
not make it any easier in the decision to donate. This is demonstrated in Grey’s Anatomy
through the rejection of the dead patient’s wife to donate. Until “The patient’s body is no
longer co-existent with the person and the family comes to recognise ‘the absence of a
future’” (Haddow, 2005, 101) the subject of donating organs can be sensitive. The wife in
the episode strongly decides against donating her husband’s organs when she is asked
about his liver. It is not until she is informed of the man receiving the liver that she sees that
it could save a life. The belief that part of her husband’s ‘self’ lives on is a comforting
thought to her as with some of the interviewed patients also.
The notion of ‘bodily immortality’ through organ transplant is stated by Haddow to be one
of the reasons why some families chose to donate. For example, an interviewee stated that
by donating, it was as if a part of the deceased ‘lived on’. “Well I feel that there is a little bit
of her out there. She’s not gone, not completely gone.” (Haddow, 2005, pg 100) This can be
supported by the encouragement of the recipient of the donor organ to write an
anonymous letter to the donor family. In the process of transplantation it is common for
the recipient to suffer some confusion of self identity in relation to their own body with
“20% of heart recipients ostensibly experience clinical depression” (Shildrick, 2009, pg 36).
This confusion as to who the heart (or organ) actually belongs to is made deeper by the
letter. Many recipients feel as if they are in debt to the donor family and thus, in some
cases, have an obligation of care over them (Shildrick, 2009, pg 37). To some this is seen as a
bad idea “I think the less we know is better than knowing to much” (Haddow, 2005, pg 105).
Through both the readings this week on organ donation and transplantation and the
viewing of Grey’s Anatomy episode 3 season 1, my understanding of the process of organ
donation has been greatly widened. The key beliefs and ideas behind the decision to donate
appear extremely relevant to the episode which, in turn, assisted my understanding as a
visual aid. Through the works of Descartes and Merleau-Ponty I have witnessed the key
concepts of death and identity at work in the readings and in the episode of Grey’s Anatomy
“Winning a battle, losing the War”.
REFERENCE LIST:

Shildrick, M, 2009, “Troubling dimensions of heart transplantation”, Medical
Humanities, Vol. 35, no. 1, pg 35-38

Haddow, G, 2005, “The phenomenology of death, embodiment and organ
transplantation”, Sociology of Health and Illness, Vol. 27, no. 1, pg 92-113