Tobacco Documents Online

C Ibo$ AngdN am" TMM N". o, ,ore-tatrt tY 1 7 y }: Sniok~rsSIiu~ ii ., .k, ~ Coi~.rse o , n Deat~ rOREST GROVE, Oreg. cm-St~ts who take clasa~a on death and:dand relaR~d topua tend to be no~m- kera. . .~~ :~ ~., . ~ ~ , . ;, ; This ia one ~tartling fact that ~as anriac~d during the past several years from "death" classes taught at Pacific University by Dr. George Evans of the English h factil Since he startedG~S classea on the topic of death in 1971. Evans has had more than 200 students. Only 1% of these students smoked. In his xegular Eaglish ciaases, Evans finds that some 50% of the >}tudents amoke. °; "1 can only surmise that the nonsmokers are more aware of how fragile I#fe is," says evans. "They are concerned about their own mortality and care for their health Their avoidance of tobacco is one example of this." Evans believes he was one of the first professors In the nation some seven yeara-ago to atart teaching about death. He usually teaches such a course once a year and last summer be offered "The Theme of Death in Literature." His classes ara generally limited to 20 students, and they fill up quickly. "Taboos ~ m~nde deaih tab o~bjecL~'Peop~le t day a~~M re y pure~n~ happiness and avmding dis pain and death. The eclentific nature of our culture has I people to suppress the topic of death. It'a a mystery that are don't like, and it frightens us." 1 i'~;; ' Evanasa,y a more women thui men enroll in his death claases, and he thinks women are more open in dealing with death "Women eeecn to be more Interested In gfe and death; women represent the source of life," Evans explaina. "Meu see death as an adversary, and they always lose. 'Today's young people are not confronted by death as were their ca;nterparts at the turn of the century. It's a youth culture,W people live longer."