Why do families have open casket

[Anonymous]

Viewings? It’s so macabre

[Anonymous]

I don't know, my family doesn't. I guess it gives some people closure?

[Anonymous]

It's religion specific. In Judaism I have never once seen or heard of anyone having an open casket.

[Anonymous]

All death related culture is weird if you think about it like that. Nobody has normal, no macabre death rituals.

[Anonymous]

Emmett Till's mother insisted on having an open casket and no reconstruction of his body so that people could see what had been done to him.

That's the only reason I've heard that makes sense to me, but if someone wants one, that's fine.

[Anonymous]

This was invented as a ploy for funeral homes to make more money.

Don't fall for it. It's not a tradition in any way, shape or form.

[Anonymous]

Some people get closure from it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know, my family doesn't. I guess it gives some people closure?

I've been to open casket visitations/funerals for non-family including a child, although our family hasn't had any funerals with open caskets for the public. For family, I've seen the open casket in private before the funeral. It gives me closure in a way a memorial service with no body doesn't. Maybe because it's tangible/proof?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This was invented as a ploy for funeral homes to make more money.

Don't fall for it. It's not a tradition in any way, shape or form.

I'm 20:36. For family only, we were able to see the body in the casket without embalming. I believe there was a prep fee, but it wasn't as expensive as embalming and I'm not sure what "extra" was done vs. just leaving the casket closed or if it cost more than that would have anyway, other than giving us a time to show up and a nice parlor room.

Obviously the whole casket/vault/plot, etc. is more expensive than cremation, but this was not a person who wished to be cremated in any case, so that was already being paid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some people get closure from it.

It's this. I see a lot of people talking to it

[Anonymous]

The only one I have been to recently was a young family member (early 20s) who died unexpectedly of a drug overdose. The open casket was for family only, and if I'm not mistaken, it was the day before the funeral? Maybe the morning of the funeral? Either way, the casket was closed for the funeral itself. But I think it was important for close family to see him one more time and say goodbye, seeing as how they had no chance to say goodbye and he was so young. If he had been sick for many years, and this had been expected, I doubt they would have had the open casket portion, because they did not do open casket for any other funerals before or after (all of elderly family members).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people get closure from it.

It's this. I see a lot of people talking to it

This.

A friend of mine kept her father’s body at home for 2 days after he passed so they could grieve with him. Not everybody just wants to put their loved ones in a box and that’s that. Many people grieve better when they still have access to their loved ones.

[Anonymous]

I think there is a very visceral "what if she isn't in there / what if she isn't dead" fear that open casket resolves for some people. But I've only been to a couple funerals with actual caskets, mostly my family does memorials months after the death.

[Anonymous]

You are all so culturally and historically ignorant. Try reading up on social and religious practices before posting your ignorance here.

[Anonymous]

I don’t get it. My mom has many siblings who she deferred to when planning my grandmother’s funeral. It was open casket. Now, whenever I think of my grandmother, an image of her dead in a casket comes to mind. I would have much preferred to not have that image in my memory bank.

My father died when I was young. I am so thankful my mom didn’t do an open casket so when I think of my dad, the images that come to mind are of him alive instead of dead.