What is the Truth of Death and Dying? Reflections on Fulton, Foucault, and Finitude

Abstract

This article highlights Michel Foucault's neglected insights regarding the social and discursive construction of death in contemporary Western societies. It also describes the limitations of Foucault's views, pointing out some of the key dimensions of death, dying, and resistance he overlooks because he downplays the agency exercised by human beings. The article concludes with a discussion of how and why Foucault's analyses need the corrective offered by Robert Fulton's work. Fulton recognizes and emphasizes the human capacity for agency, meaning making, and resistance, particularly in addressing the “truth” of death and dying.