Difference Between Obituary and Eulogy

Obituary vs Eulogy

If you read newspapers, you must have come across obituaries a number of times that remembers the deceased and serves the purpose of informing those concerned about the death of the person. Eulogy is another word used for the words of praise said about a deceased person. Though the two appear to be similar, there are many differences between obituary and eulogy, which will be highlighted in this article.

Obituary

There are many kinds of rituals and practices performed when a person dies, and one of these is to inform all about the death so they may be able to attend the last rites or the funeral. Death of a person in a family is a moment of grave sorrow, and close ones are mourning so much that it is not possible to remember all relatives and friends to inform them personally about death and the ensuing functions. Newspaper is considered to be the best medium to let the news spread all over, as one person who reads the news about the death of a known person, talks about it with his acquaintances and relatives. In reality, an obituary is a paid advertisement carrying the photograph of the dead person and a small text that inform all about death and the date and time of the last rites or any other function to be held in the near future.

Eulogy

In the western world, it is a practice for people to be asked to come up on stage and say a few good words about the deceased during his or her funeral. This is termed as eulogy, though eulogy merely means good words that need not be necessarily spoken about a dead person in his funeral. Speaking in praise of a colleague who has just retired is also considered a eulogy. Thus, eulogies are praises of living people, and in many cultures, such praises have a long tradition, where poets and singers wrote and sang eulogies for kings and other influential persons.

However, when a eulogy is delivered in a funeral, it is in written form and read out from a piece of paper by close relatives and dear friends who remember their association with the deceased and describe his good qualities.

What is the difference between Obituary and Eulogy?

• An obituary is a paid advertisement that appears in newspapers and informs one and sundry about the death of a person as well as the last functions along with date and schedule.

• Eulogy is words of praise that are delivered or read from a piece of paper for the deceased or a living person.

• Obituary is published in a newspaper where as eulogy is read out from a piece of paper.

• Obituary is always in remembrance of the dead, whereas eulogy can be both for the dead as well as living.

• Eulogy is read by close relatives to describe the good qualities of a person, whereas obituary is used for informational purposes only.