Grief (novel)
During the course of the novel, the ideas of the stages of grief are introduced. The stages are denial, anger, depression, and acceptance. The narrator, as well as other characters in the story, slowly passes through these stages in trying to deal with death.
Animal grief
There are different “categories” of emotions known as primary and secondary emotions. Bekoff explains that primary emotions are similar to reflex or something along the lines of fear or fight-or-flight response. Therefore, it is something that animals react to such as loud noises, unknown objects, or odors (Bekoff, 2000). Having primary emotions is crucial because reactions to these are important for an animal's survival. The part of the brain that is responsible for primary emotions is the limbic system (Bekoff, 2000).