[pessimizer]

> I think a huge part of it isnt even corporatism, but social and cultural avoidance and fear of death.

These aren't mutually exclusive. It's like saying "I think a huge part of the desire for fashionable clothing isn't even fashion, but the fear of being ostracized or left behind by one's social circle." A natural source of fear and uncertainty is stoked by people who find opportunity to make a buck off it.

"The American Way of Death" is a good book to read in that vein, although it's about the pointless, blindingly expensive ostentation of US burial rituals. The book was very successful and well-regarded; didn't change a thing.

[s1artibartfast]

I think trained consumerism is a big part of it. People are trained to think (usually erroneously) that the solution to every problem is a product or service.

X will make me happy, Im sad because I dont have Y. There are absolutely outside forces pushing this, but there is also a deficit of cultural forces and norms pushing back. Its not that people are being bombed by advertising for expensive burials, but that they have low experience with excellent and cheap alternatives. Human culture is slow to change, and usually does so on the order of decades or generations. Any impact from things like books will be at the margin, especially since most readers are already inclined to agree.