The Lost Art of Dying

L. S. Dugdale

A Columbia University physician comes across a popular medieval

text on dying well written after the horror of the Black Plague and discovers

ancient wisdom for rethinking death and gaining insight today on how we can

learn the lost art of dying well in this wise, clear-eyed book that is as

compelling and soulful as Being Mortal, When Breath Becomes

Air, and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.

As a specialist in both medical ethics and the treatment of older patients, Dr.

L. S. Dugdale knows a great deal about the end of life. Far too many of us die

poorly, she argues. Our culture has overly medicalized death: dying is often

institutional and sterile, prolonged by unnecessary resuscitations and other

intrusive interventions. We are not going gently into that good night—our

reliance on modern medicine can actually prolong suffering and strip us of our

dignity. Yet our lives do not have to end this way.

Centuries

ago, in the wake of the Black Plague, a text was published offering advice to

help the living prepare for a good death. Written during the late Middle Ages, ars

moriendi—The Art of Dying—made

clear that to die well, one first had to live well and described what practices

best help us prepare. When Dugdale discovered this Medieval book, it was a

revelation. Inspired by its holistic approach to the final stage we must all

one day face, she draws from this forgotten work, combining its wisdom with the

knowledge she has gleaned from her long medical career. The Lost Art of Dying is a

twenty-first century ars moriendi, filled with much-needed insight and

thoughtful guidance that will change our perceptions. By recovering our sense

of finitude, confronting our fears, accepting how our bodies age, developing

meaningful rituals, and involving our communities in end-of-life care, we can

discover what it means to both live and die well. And like the original ars

moriendi, The Lost Art of Dying includes nine black-and-white drawings

from artist Michael W. Dugger.

Dr.

Dugdale offers a hopeful perspective on death and dying as she shows us how to

adapt the wisdom from the past to our lives today. The Lost Art of Dying is a vital, affecting

book that reconsiders death, death culture, and how we can transform how we

live each day, including our last.

€ 15,45