Tensions in the process of constructing meaning in the face of death in individuals belonging to contemporary Mexican society

This article analyzes the tensions involved in meaning-making processes surrounding death among individuals in contemporary Mexican society. Drawing on ten in-depth qualitative interviews, it explores the narratives of adults who experienced the loss of a loved one and engaged in processes of re-signification. The study is grounded in Peter L. Berger’s sociological theory of the social construction of reality and the notion of theodicy—the attempt to justify suffering and reestablish symbolic order in the face of the inexplicable. Two primary interpretive frameworks are identified: the traditional theodicy, rooted in religious systems that give death a transcendent meaning, and the secularized theodicy, supported by modern rational or scientific discourses. Findings reveal that contemporary Mexicans navigate between both models, generating a tension between the human need for symbolic coherence and the cultural fragmentation characteristic of modernity. Understanding these tensions highlights collective processes of re-signification that emerge in mourning contexts and underscores the need for a culturally sensitive psychology that acknowledges the historical and symbolic dimensions of human suffering.