The life of memory and social death

A proposal for a phenomenological look for analysis and intervention on social death

Abstract

The present work proposes, by carrying out a narrative literature review on the phenomenon of social death, to think about how its occurrence is related to the experience of young people. This initiative is thought from the phenomenological perspective centered on the studies of Eugène Minkowski and supported by the theoretical production of Paul Ricoeur, and seeks to understand how the act of remembering can be a possible answer to mitigate the suffering that results from this phenomenon. The objective of the work, therefore, focuses on the theoretical elaboration on how musical practice can act in cases of social death, rescuing the subject's vital contact by the act of remembering. After conceptualizing social death and proposing phenomenological readings about its occurrence, the use of musical activity is proposed as a possible form of memory exercise to re-establish significantly affective experiences as an identity support in everyday life. The present work supports the continuous development of investigations about the phenomenon of social death and its possible forms of understanding and clinical intervention.