Erika Wilson

English 11B
Mr. Gross
January 25, 2015
Mortuary Science
Mortuary science is the study of deceased bodies through mortuary work. The term is
most often applied to a college curriculum in the United States that prepares a student for a
career as a mortician or funeral director. During the process the body goes through after death.
There are sevens stages that a person's body goes through after death has set in. There is also
many stages of the embalming process that a mortician has to go though to get a body ready for
a funeral/burial service .
Clinical death is defined as a cessation or failure of all vital bodily functions. The heart
stops beating, lungs cease to function, and the brain stem dies off. (Sarah Thompson- stages).
Death comes in many forms whether it's expected due to a tragic medical diagnosis , an
unexpected accident or maybe planning and carried out by a disturbed person - Death happens.
Approximately 150,000 people die around the world each day (Sarah Thompson- stages).
There are seven stages that a body goes through after death occurs. The heart stops
beating, the body starts convulsing, the person starts having shortness of breath and the ears start
to become cold do to lack of circulation.(Sarah Thompson- stages). The blood turns acidic, the
larynx loses its cough reflex and build up of mucus may occur(Sarah Thompson- stages).
Stage two occurs zero minutes after death, clinical death arrives as the brain stops getting
oxygen. This death of the brain eventually shuts down and other vital body functions including
circulation throughout the body to extremities (Sarah Thompson- stages). Pallor mortis, paleness
of the body set in almost immediately because of lack of circulation. (Sarah Thompson- stages).
Stage 3 occurs about nine minutes after death, blood starts to pool up in your body.(Sarah
Thompson- stages). Which starts to cause discoloration called Livor Mortis, usually a reddish
color (Sarah Thompson- stages). This process can take longer (Approximately 3 hour) but,
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Erika Wilson
English 11B
Mr. Gross
January 25, 2015
because many people die with their eyes open, the process often occurs in this time frame
(Sarah Thompson- stages).
Stage four occurs one to eight hours after death Rigor Mortis starts to set in. This stage is
where your muscles start to become stiff.Your hair starts to stand straight up(Sarah Thompsonstages). Rigor Mortis is due to the lactic acid in the muscles causing rigidity in the tissues.(Sarah
Thompson- stages). This is why your hair seems to grow fast after death because stiffening of
your muscles pushes up your hair follicles (Sarah Thompson- stages).
Stage five occurs one to Five days after death Rigor Mortis ends at the beginning of this
stage and again the body becomes more pliable (Sarah Thompson- stages). At 24-72 hours,
Internal microbes putrefy. The intestines and the pancreas begins to decay (Sarah Thompsonstages).
Stage six occurs eight to ten days after death, bacteria located in the intestines feed off of
the dead tissues and start to give off gases.Which causes the belly to swell (Sarah Thompsonstages). The body starts to emit an odor during this purification (Sarah Thompson- stages).
Stage seven occurs two weeks after death, the hair, nails, and teeth begin to decay very
easily ( Sarah Thompson- stages).
The skins slippage during this stage can make it hard to move the body if discovered in this
condition (Sarah Thompson- stages).

Mortuary science is a combination of both medical and culture knowledge. During the
embalming process there are many things that a mortician has to do to get a body ready for a
funeral/burial service.

Erika Wilson
English 11B
Mr. Gross
January 25, 2015
Part artistes and part scientist, embalmers provide a necessary service in a funeral home
by sterilizing, preserving and restoring the deceased to a more life-like appearance (embalmingWikihow).
Preparing the body for embalming, before they start they surgical embalming or cosmetic
process can begin the body is cleaned in disinfectant solution. Then the facial hair is shaved off
unless the person who died wore facial hair (embalming - Everplans).
Setting the facial features, often the eyes are closed they are glued or a plastic flesh ovalshaped eye caps that sit on the dye to secure the eyelid in place (embalming- Everplan). The
mouth is closed and the lower jaw is secured, either by sewing or wires (embalming- Everplan).
Arterial embalming, the blood removed from the body via the veins and replaced with an
embalming solution via arteries (embalming- Everplan). The embalming solution is usually a
combination of formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, methanol, ethanol, phenol, and water, and may
also contain dyes in order to simulate a lifelike skin-tone (embalming- Everplan).
Cavity embalming, a small incision is made near the belly button and a sharp instrument
used for drainage called Trocar is inserted into the body cavity (embalming- Everplan). Using the
Trocar organs in the chest cavity and abdomen are punctured and are drained of gases and fluid
content are replaced with formaldehyde- based chemical mixtures (embalming- Everplan). The
incision is closed, and at this point this point the embalming is over (embalming- Everplan).
After the embalming process is over the family is able to start and or finish the funeral/Burial
service planning.

Erika Wilson
English 11B
Mr. Gross
January 25, 2015

Thompson, Sarah. "10 Fascinating Stages of Death - Listverse." Listverse. N.p., 26 Oct. 2012.
Web. 23 Feb. 2015.
The Embalming Process (Explicit)." Everplans. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Feb. 2015.