TRAVAILLEURS DE LA MORT / WORKERS OF DEATH – Charles Guyard

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Author:

Charles Guyard

Date:

Aube
August 2025

Author:

Additional Info

WORKERS OF DEATH

Rights Holder: Aube
Original Language: French

Funeral professionals emerge from the shadows and recount their harrowing daily lives through accounts of the major tragedies of recent years.

This book addresses a little-known subject: the work of funeral directors in exceptional situations (air crashes, terrorist attacks, natural disasters, sordid events, etc.) and the psychological impact of on personnel.

20 stories told through the eyes of these professionals, well-known, even very wellknown tragedies immerse the readers in a reality that could’t be imagined.

What do funeral home employees feel, deep down, when confronted with the tragedies of our time? When the emergency services have left the field, and hope with them, how do they work with the mutilated, tortured bodies, and, above all, how do they manage the emotional shock?

Funeral technicians escape any official support structure, and are further deprived of any form of recognition. Who can they talk to about their torments when things get out of hand?

From the start of their mission to their work on site, and even the aftermath, these touching, sometimes even heartbreaking stories shed light on a profession and the unrecognized malaise that afflicts these workers of death. And this should make us wonder: what recognition do we give to those who manage the ultimate taboo in our societies?

Charles Guyard a freelance journalist, a regular contributor to Le Point, Marianne, Radio France, and RTL.

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