The semantic of obituaries as a cultural indicator of processes of secularization?

Author(s): Melzer, A.

Journal/Book: Z Soz. 1996; 25: Postfach 30 03 66, D-70443 Stuttgart, Germany. Ferdinand Enke Verlag. 304.

Abstract: Cultural Secularization is the process of the disappearance of formerly religious, especially Christian, beliefs as binding cultural patterns, We assume that the process of secularization, as a general trend in cultural change, is influenced by two factors: (a) Political regimes which constrain religious freedom and offer alternative ideological belief systems will accelerate the process of secularization. (b) Anti-clerical working class people are more open to the processes of secularization than people from the conservative middle classes. This article tests whether there is a general trend toward secularization and whether this trend is influenced by the two factors mentioned. A systematic content analysis of obituaries from the last hundred years (1894-1994) in two East German newspapers is the empirical basis of the study. The hypotheses of increasing secularization and the greater impact of anti-clerical political regimes on the process of secularization are falsified. Rather, there is a class-specific factor in the general trend.

Note: Article J Gerhards, Univ Leipzig, Inst Kulturwissensch, Augustuspl 9, D-04109 Leipzig, Germany

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