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  1. - Top - End - #1
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
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    Default Why are people afraid of death?

    It's a fact that everyone is going to die one day, whya re people so afraid of it?

    it's like being afraid that the sky is blue, it just is, there is nothing you can do about it.

    I really don't get what the fuss is all about.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    It's a fact that everyone is going to die one day, whya re people so afraid of it?....

    Mostly because of the
    Spoiler: testimonials of those who've tried it
    Show
    Ulysses Visits the Underworld,
    From The Odyssey by Homer (written 800 BC)
    translated by Samuel Butler

    BOOK XI

    … we got into the deep
    waters of the river Oceanus, where lie the land and city of the Cimmerians who live enshrouded in mist and darkness which the rays of the sun never pierce neither at his rising nor as he goes down
    again out of the heavens, but the poor wretches live in one long melancholy night. When we got there we beached the ship, took the sheep out of her, and went along by the waters of Oceanus till we came to the place of which Circe had told us.

    When I had prayed sufficiently to the dead, I cut the throats of the two sheep and let the blood run into the trench, whereon the ghosts came trooping up from Erebus- brides, young bachelors, old men worn out with toil, maids who had been crossed in love, and brave men who had been killed in battle, with their armour still smirched with blood; they came from every quarter and flitted round the trench with a strange kind of screaming sound that made me turn pale with fear. When I saw them coming I told the men to be quick and flay the carcasses of the two dead sheep and make burnt offerings of them, and at the same time to repeat prayers to Hades and to Proserpine; but I sat where I was with my sword drawn and would not let the poor feckless ghosts come near the blood till Teiresias should have answered my questions.

    "The first ghost 'that came was that of my comrade Elpenor, for he had not yet been laid beneath the earth. We had left his body unwaked and unburied in Circe's house, for we had had too much else to do. I was very sorry for him, and cried when I saw him: 'Elpenor,' said I, 'how did you come down here into this gloom and darkness?
    You have here on foot quicker than I have with my ship.'

    "'Sir,' he answered with a groan, 'it was all bad luck, and my own unspeakable drunkenness. I was lying asleep on the top of Circe's house, and never thought of coming down again by the great staircase but fell right off the roof and broke my neck, so my soul down to the house of Hades. And now I beseech you by all those whom you have left behind you, though they are not here, by your wife, by the father who brought you up when you were a child, and by Telemachus who is the one hope of your house, do what I shall now ask you. I know that when you leave this limbo you will again hold your ship for the Aeaean island. Do not go thence leaving me unwaked and unburied behind you, or I may bring heaven's anger upon you; but burn me with whatever armour I have, build a barrow for me on the sea shore, that may tell people in days to come what a poor unlucky fellow I was, and plant over my grave the oar I used to row with when I was yet alive and with my messmates.' And I said, 'My poor fellow, I will do all that you have asked of me.'

    "Thus, then, did we sit and hold sad talk with one another, I on the one side of the trench with my sword held over the blood, and the ghost of my comrade saying all this to me from the other side. Then came the ghost of my dead mother Anticlea, daughter to Autolycus. I had left her alive when I set out for Troy and was moved to tears when
    I saw her, but even so, for all my sorrow I would not let her come near the blood till I had asked my questions of Teiresias.

    "Then came also the ghost of Theban Teiresias, with his golden sceptre in his hand. He knew me and said, 'Ulysses, noble son of Laertes, why, poor man, have you left the light of day and come down to visit the dead in this sad place? Stand back from the trench and withdraw your sword that I may drink of the blood and answer your questions truly.'

    "So I drew back, and sheathed my sword, whereon when he had drank of the blood he began with his prophecy.

    "'This,' I answered, 'must be as it may please heaven, but tell me and tell me and tell me true, I see my poor mother's ghost close by us; she is sitting by the blood without saying a word, and though I am her own son she does not remember me and speak to me; tell me, Sir, how I can make her know me.'

    "'That,' said he, 'I can soon do Any ghost that you let taste of the blood will talk with you like a reasonable being, but if you do not let them have any blood they will go away again.'

    "On this the ghost of Teiresias went back to the house of Hades, for his prophecyings had now been spoken, but I sat still where I was until my mother came up and tasted the blood. Then she knew me at once and spoke fondly to me, saying, 'My son, how did you come down to this abode of darkness while you are still alive? It is a hard thing for the living to see these places, for between us and them there are great and terrible waters, and there is Oceanus, which no man can cross on foot, but he must have a good ship to take him. Are you all this time trying to find your way home from Troy, and have you never yet got back to Ithaca nor seen your wife in your own house?'

    "'Mother,' said I, 'I was forced to come here to consult the ghost of the Theban prophet Teiresias.

    "Then I tried to find some way of embracing my mother's ghost.
    Thrice I sprang towards her and tried to clasp her in my arms, but each time she flitted from my embrace as it were a dream or phantom, and being touched to the quick I said to her, 'Mother, why do you not stay still when I would embrace you? If we could throw our arms around one another we might find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows even in the house of Hades; does Proserpine want to lay a still further load of grief upon me by mocking me with a phantom only?'

    "'My son,' she answered, 'most ill-fated of all mankind, it is not Proserpine that is beguiling you, but all people are like this when they are dead. The sinews no longer hold the flesh and bones together; these perish in the fierceness of consuming fire as soon as life has left the body, and the soul flits away as though it were a dream. Now, however, go back to the light of day as soon as you can, and note all these things that you may tell them to your wife hereafter.'

    "Thus did we converse, and anon Proserpine sent up the ghosts of the wives and daughters of all the most famous men. They gathered in crowds about the blood, and I considered how I might question them severally. In the end I deemed that it would be best to draw the keen blade that hung by my sturdy thigh, and keep them from all drinking the blood at once. So they came up one after the other, and each one as I questioned her told me her race and lineage.

    But it would take me all night if I were to name every single one of the wives and daughters of heroes whom I saw,
    … Here he ended, and the guests sat all of them enthralled and speechless throughout the covered cloister.

    "Ulysses," replied Alcinous, "…. The evenings are still at their longest, and it is not yet bed time- go on, therefore, with your divine story, for I could stay here listening till tomorrow morning, so long as you will continue to tell us of your adventures."

    "Alcinous," answered Ulysses, "there is a time for making speeches, and a time for going to bed; nevertheless, since you so
    desire, I will not refrain from telling you the still sadder tale...

    ...the ghost of Achilles came up to us with Patroclus, Antilochus, and Ajax who was the finest and goodliest man of all the Danaans after the son of Peleus. The fleet descendant of Aeacus knew me and spoke piteously, saying, 'Ulysses, noble son of Laertes, what deed of daring will you undertake next, that you venture down to the house of Hades among us silly dead, who are but the ghosts of them that can labour no more?'
    "And I said, 'Achilles, son of Peleus, foremost champion of the Achaeans, I came to consult Teiresias, and see if he could advise me about my return home to Ithaca, for I have never yet been able to get near the Achaean land, nor to set foot in my own country, but have been in trouble all the time. As for you, Achilles, no one was ever yet so fortunate as you have been, nor ever will be, for you were adored by all us Argives as long as you were alive, and now that you are here you are a great prince among the dead. Do not, therefore, take it so much to heart even if you are dead.'

    "'Say not a word,' he answered, 'in death's favour; I would rather be a paid servant in a poor man's house and be above ground than king of kings among the dead. But give me news about son; is he gone to the wars and will he be a great soldier, or is this not so? Tell me also if you have heard anything about my father Peleus does he still rule among the Myrmidons, or do they show him no respect throughout Hellas and Phthia now that he is old and his limbs fail him? Could I but stand by his side, in the light of day, with the same strength that I had when I killed the bravest of our foes upon the plain of Troy could I but be as I then was and go even for a short time to my father's house, any one who tried to do him violence or supersede him would soon me it.'

    "'I have heard nothing,' I answered, 'of Peleus,

    "The ghosts of other dead men stood near me and told me each his own melancholy tale; but that of Ajax son of Telamon alone held aloof still angry with me for having won the cause in our dispute about the armour of Achilles. Thetis had offered it as a prize, but the Trojan prisoners and Minerva were the judges. Would that I had never gained the day in such a contest, for it cost the life of Ajax, who was foremost of all the Danaans after the son of Peleus, alike in stature and prowess.

    "When I saw him I tried to pacify him and said, 'Ajax, will you not forget and forgive even in death, but must the judgement about that hateful armour still rankle with you? It cost us Argives dear enough to lose such a tower of strength as you were to us. We mourned you as much as we mourned Achilles son of Peleus himself,
    nor can the blame be laid on anything but on the spite which Jove bore against the Danaans, for it was this that made him counsel your destruction- come hither, therefore, bring your proud spirit into subjection, and hear what I can tell you.'

    "He would not answer, but turned away to Erebus and to the other ghosts; nevertheless, I should have made him talk to me in spite of his being so angry, or I should have gone talking to him, only that there were still others among the dead whom I desired to see.

    "I saw also the dreadful fate of Tantalus, who stood in a lake that reached his chin; he was dying to quench his thirst, but could never reach the water, for whenever the poor creature stooped to drink, it dried up and vanished, so that there was nothing but dry ground- parched by the spite of heaven. There were tall trees, moreover, that shed their fruit over his head- pears, pomegranates, apples, sweet figs and juicy olives, but whenever the poor creature stretched out his hand to take some, the wind tossed the branches back again to the clouds.

    "And I saw Sisyphus at his endless task raising his prodigious stone with both his hands. With hands and feet he' tried to roll it up to the top of the hill, but always, just before he could roll it over on to the other side, its weight would be too much for him, and the pitiless stone would come thundering down again on to the plain.
    Then he would begin trying to push it up hill again, and the sweat ran off him and the steam rose after him.

    And I should have seen still other of them that are gone before, whom I would fain have seen- Theseus and Pirithous glorious children of the gods, but so many thousands of ghosts came round me and uttered such appalling cries, that I was panic stricken lest Proserpine should send up from the house of Hades the head of that awful monster Gorgon. On this I hastened back to my ship and ordered my men to go on board at once and loose the hawsers; so they embarked and took their places, whereon the ship went down the stream of the river Oceanus. We had to row at first, but presently a fair wind sprang up.
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  3. - Top - End - #3
    Ogre in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Because not wanting to avoid death is a terrible evolutionary trait. You won't make it far in the wild if you don't care about staying alive.

  4. - Top - End - #4
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by An Enemy Spy View Post
    Because not wanting to avoid death is a terrible evolutionary trait. You won't make it far in the wild if you don't care about staying alive.
    But we don't live in the wild anymore.

    I find it funny on how many guys want to go back to the uncivilized ages, with all this talk of alpha males and other nonsense.

    Quote Originally Posted by 2D8HP View Post
    Mostly because of the
    Spoiler: testimonials of those who've tried it
    Show
    Ulysses Visits the Underworld,
    From The Odyssey by Homer (written 800 BC)
    translated by Samuel Butler

    BOOK XI

    … we got into the deep
    waters of the river Oceanus, where lie the land and city of the Cimmerians who live enshrouded in mist and darkness which the rays of the sun never pierce neither at his rising nor as he goes down
    again out of the heavens, but the poor wretches live in one long melancholy night. When we got there we beached the ship, took the sheep out of her, and went along by the waters of Oceanus till we came to the place of which Circe had told us.

    When I had prayed sufficiently to the dead, I cut the throats of the two sheep and let the blood run into the trench, whereon the ghosts came trooping up from Erebus- brides, young bachelors, old men worn out with toil, maids who had been crossed in love, and brave men who had been killed in battle, with their armour still smirched with blood; they came from every quarter and flitted round the trench with a strange kind of screaming sound that made me turn pale with fear. When I saw them coming I told the men to be quick and flay the carcasses of the two dead sheep and make burnt offerings of them, and at the same time to repeat prayers to Hades and to Proserpine; but I sat where I was with my sword drawn and would not let the poor feckless ghosts come near the blood till Teiresias should have answered my questions.

    "The first ghost 'that came was that of my comrade Elpenor, for he had not yet been laid beneath the earth. We had left his body unwaked and unburied in Circe's house, for we had had too much else to do. I was very sorry for him, and cried when I saw him: 'Elpenor,' said I, 'how did you come down here into this gloom and darkness?
    You have here on foot quicker than I have with my ship.'

    "'Sir,' he answered with a groan, 'it was all bad luck, and my own unspeakable drunkenness. I was lying asleep on the top of Circe's house, and never thought of coming down again by the great staircase but fell right off the roof and broke my neck, so my soul down to the house of Hades. And now I beseech you by all those whom you have left behind you, though they are not here, by your wife, by the father who brought you up when you were a child, and by Telemachus who is the one hope of your house, do what I shall now ask you. I know that when you leave this limbo you will again hold your ship for the Aeaean island. Do not go thence leaving me unwaked and unburied behind you, or I may bring heaven's anger upon you; but burn me with whatever armour I have, build a barrow for me on the sea shore, that may tell people in days to come what a poor unlucky fellow I was, and plant over my grave the oar I used to row with when I was yet alive and with my messmates.' And I said, 'My poor fellow, I will do all that you have asked of me.'

    "Thus, then, did we sit and hold sad talk with one another, I on the one side of the trench with my sword held over the blood, and the ghost of my comrade saying all this to me from the other side. Then came the ghost of my dead mother Anticlea, daughter to Autolycus. I had left her alive when I set out for Troy and was moved to tears when
    I saw her, but even so, for all my sorrow I would not let her come near the blood till I had asked my questions of Teiresias.

    "Then came also the ghost of Theban Teiresias, with his golden sceptre in his hand. He knew me and said, 'Ulysses, noble son of Laertes, why, poor man, have you left the light of day and come down to visit the dead in this sad place? Stand back from the trench and withdraw your sword that I may drink of the blood and answer your questions truly.'

    "So I drew back, and sheathed my sword, whereon when he had drank of the blood he began with his prophecy.

    "'This,' I answered, 'must be as it may please heaven, but tell me and tell me and tell me true, I see my poor mother's ghost close by us; she is sitting by the blood without saying a word, and though I am her own son she does not remember me and speak to me; tell me, Sir, how I can make her know me.'

    "'That,' said he, 'I can soon do Any ghost that you let taste of the blood will talk with you like a reasonable being, but if you do not let them have any blood they will go away again.'

    "On this the ghost of Teiresias went back to the house of Hades, for his prophecyings had now been spoken, but I sat still where I was until my mother came up and tasted the blood. Then she knew me at once and spoke fondly to me, saying, 'My son, how did you come down to this abode of darkness while you are still alive? It is a hard thing for the living to see these places, for between us and them there are great and terrible waters, and there is Oceanus, which no man can cross on foot, but he must have a good ship to take him. Are you all this time trying to find your way home from Troy, and have you never yet got back to Ithaca nor seen your wife in your own house?'

    "'Mother,' said I, 'I was forced to come here to consult the ghost of the Theban prophet Teiresias.

    "Then I tried to find some way of embracing my mother's ghost.
    Thrice I sprang towards her and tried to clasp her in my arms, but each time she flitted from my embrace as it were a dream or phantom, and being touched to the quick I said to her, 'Mother, why do you not stay still when I would embrace you? If we could throw our arms around one another we might find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows even in the house of Hades; does Proserpine want to lay a still further load of grief upon me by mocking me with a phantom only?'

    "'My son,' she answered, 'most ill-fated of all mankind, it is not Proserpine that is beguiling you, but all people are like this when they are dead. The sinews no longer hold the flesh and bones together; these perish in the fierceness of consuming fire as soon as life has left the body, and the soul flits away as though it were a dream. Now, however, go back to the light of day as soon as you can, and note all these things that you may tell them to your wife hereafter.'

    "Thus did we converse, and anon Proserpine sent up the ghosts of the wives and daughters of all the most famous men. They gathered in crowds about the blood, and I considered how I might question them severally. In the end I deemed that it would be best to draw the keen blade that hung by my sturdy thigh, and keep them from all drinking the blood at once. So they came up one after the other, and each one as I questioned her told me her race and lineage.

    But it would take me all night if I were to name every single one of the wives and daughters of heroes whom I saw,
    … Here he ended, and the guests sat all of them enthralled and speechless throughout the covered cloister.

    "Ulysses," replied Alcinous, "…. The evenings are still at their longest, and it is not yet bed time- go on, therefore, with your divine story, for I could stay here listening till tomorrow morning, so long as you will continue to tell us of your adventures."

    "Alcinous," answered Ulysses, "there is a time for making speeches, and a time for going to bed; nevertheless, since you so
    desire, I will not refrain from telling you the still sadder tale...

    ...the ghost of Achilles came up to us with Patroclus, Antilochus, and Ajax who was the finest and goodliest man of all the Danaans after the son of Peleus. The fleet descendant of Aeacus knew me and spoke piteously, saying, 'Ulysses, noble son of Laertes, what deed of daring will you undertake next, that you venture down to the house of Hades among us silly dead, who are but the ghosts of them that can labour no more?'
    "And I said, 'Achilles, son of Peleus, foremost champion of the Achaeans, I came to consult Teiresias, and see if he could advise me about my return home to Ithaca, for I have never yet been able to get near the Achaean land, nor to set foot in my own country, but have been in trouble all the time. As for you, Achilles, no one was ever yet so fortunate as you have been, nor ever will be, for you were adored by all us Argives as long as you were alive, and now that you are here you are a great prince among the dead. Do not, therefore, take it so much to heart even if you are dead.'

    "'Say not a word,' he answered, 'in death's favour; I would rather be a paid servant in a poor man's house and be above ground than king of kings among the dead. But give me news about son; is he gone to the wars and will he be a great soldier, or is this not so? Tell me also if you have heard anything about my father Peleus does he still rule among the Myrmidons, or do they show him no respect throughout Hellas and Phthia now that he is old and his limbs fail him? Could I but stand by his side, in the light of day, with the same strength that I had when I killed the bravest of our foes upon the plain of Troy could I but be as I then was and go even for a short time to my father's house, any one who tried to do him violence or supersede him would soon me it.'

    "'I have heard nothing,' I answered, 'of Peleus,

    "The ghosts of other dead men stood near me and told me each his own melancholy tale; but that of Ajax son of Telamon alone held aloof still angry with me for having won the cause in our dispute about the armour of Achilles. Thetis had offered it as a prize, but the Trojan prisoners and Minerva were the judges. Would that I had never gained the day in such a contest, for it cost the life of Ajax, who was foremost of all the Danaans after the son of Peleus, alike in stature and prowess.

    "When I saw him I tried to pacify him and said, 'Ajax, will you not forget and forgive even in death, but must the judgement about that hateful armour still rankle with you? It cost us Argives dear enough to lose such a tower of strength as you were to us. We mourned you as much as we mourned Achilles son of Peleus himself,
    nor can the blame be laid on anything but on the spite which Jove bore against the Danaans, for it was this that made him counsel your destruction- come hither, therefore, bring your proud spirit into subjection, and hear what I can tell you.'

    "He would not answer, but turned away to Erebus and to the other ghosts; nevertheless, I should have made him talk to me in spite of his being so angry, or I should have gone talking to him, only that there were still others among the dead whom I desired to see.

    "I saw also the dreadful fate of Tantalus, who stood in a lake that reached his chin; he was dying to quench his thirst, but could never reach the water, for whenever the poor creature stooped to drink, it dried up and vanished, so that there was nothing but dry ground- parched by the spite of heaven. There were tall trees, moreover, that shed their fruit over his head- pears, pomegranates, apples, sweet figs and juicy olives, but whenever the poor creature stretched out his hand to take some, the wind tossed the branches back again to the clouds.

    "And I saw Sisyphus at his endless task raising his prodigious stone with both his hands. With hands and feet he' tried to roll it up to the top of the hill, but always, just before he could roll it over on to the other side, its weight would be too much for him, and the pitiless stone would come thundering down again on to the plain.
    Then he would begin trying to push it up hill again, and the sweat ran off him and the steam rose after him.

    And I should have seen still other of them that are gone before, whom I would fain have seen- Theseus and Pirithous glorious children of the gods, but so many thousands of ghosts came round me and uttered such appalling cries, that I was panic stricken lest Proserpine should send up from the house of Hades the head of that awful monster Gorgon. On this I hastened back to my ship and ordered my men to go on board at once and loose the hawsers; so they embarked and took their places, whereon the ship went down the stream of the river Oceanus. We had to row at first, but presently a fair wind sprang up.
    I don't get it, what about it? He went to the underworld talked to a bunch of dead people and that explains why people are irrationally afraid of something natural that happens all the time?
    Last edited by The Eye; 2018-02-26 at 03:40 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    You might fear the causes of death as they are often unpleasant and painful. Or you might fear being dead in an abstract, existential (is that the right word?) way because you will be gone and that makes you feel negative emotions. But most people don't fear death as a concept.
    Last edited by Kobold-Bard; 2018-02-26 at 03:51 PM.
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    Quote Originally Posted by OverlordJ View Post
    New law: Obey me or you'll be crushed by a MOUNTAIN.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    [...]I don't get it, what about it? He went to the underworld talked to a bunch of dead people and that explains why people are irrationally afraid of something natural that happens all the time?

    Because the reports of the dead are that they'd rather not be dead,

    Achilles: "'Say not a word,' he answered, 'in death's favour; I would rather be a paid servant in a poor man's house and be above ground than king of kings among the dead. "

    But I wouldn't dwell on it much, as that causes you to lose games of Jenga

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    But we don't live in the wild anymore.

    I find it funny on how many guys want to go back to the uncivilized ages, with all this talk of alpha males and other nonsense.
    It's still a terrible survival trait, and so long as death remains a substantial gating mechanism for passing along one's genetic material, not being afraid of death is going to be strongly selected against.


    Now that said, this to me explains very well the momentary, instinctive fear of death. The almost getting hit by a car and freaking out sort of fear. It doesn't explain very well to me the weird intellectual dread of death that a lot of people have, and I've never grasped. I can't object to oblivion, not existing was a perfectly suitable state of affairs for the billions of years before I showed up, I can't see why not existing for the billions of years subsequent to my exit* will be any worse.


    *pursued by a bear, obviously.
    Blood-red were his spurs i' the golden noon; wine-red was his velvet coat,
    When they shot him down on the highway,
    Down like a dog on the highway,
    And he lay in his blood on the highway, with the bunch of lace at his throat.


    Alfred Noyes, The Highwayman, 1906.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    But we don't live in the wild anymore.

    I find it funny on how many guys want to go back to the uncivilized ages, with all this talk of alpha males and other nonsense.



    I don't get it, what about it? He went to the underworld talked to a bunch of dead people and that explains why people are irrationally afraid of something natural that happens all the time?
    It's something that your body is trying to avoid at every instant of your life whether you're aware of it or not. From before you had consciousness your cells were striving not to die. People are afraid of things that are dangerous because they could conceivably kill or hurt them. In that context, death is the Big Bad, and you only win by staying alive as long as possible.

    If you take a completely rationalist view of things, it's the end of everything. Things will go on after you die, but you won't know about them and you never will. Reality might as well have winked out of existence. Your consciousness - everything that makes you you, all your plans and dreams, your memories and private thoughts, everything about how you've experienced the world, will be obliterated and can never be recovered. You will never again see the faces or hear the voices of those you love, never again taste or feel; you're separated from such things for eternity in a senseless oblivion that's the absolute antithesis of everything your person and your being has ever been.

    It is by any reasonable measure absolutely terrifying. To see it as anything other would suggest that there's something seriously wrong with your life. And that's before we get into the impact on your loved ones who survive you, or the fact that the method of death itself is usually pretty unpleasant and painful. For the majority of people, dying will be the most painful thing that ever happens to them. That's reason enough not to welcome it.



    This is probably one of the reasons why people are so keen to invest in systems which posit for some afterlife, retention of consciousness or at least continuity of being after death.
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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    It's a fact that everyone is going to die one day, whya re people so afraid of it?

    it's like being afraid that the sky is blue, it just is, there is nothing you can do about it.

    I really don't get what the fuss is all about.
    Well whether or not you believe in an afterlife is clearly an issue. Assuming none, well then dying kinda stops you from being able to do ....well anything. Not being able to do things tends to be something people want to avoid. You know, so they can continue experiencing things.

    Dying now or dying eventually is a large difference. Just because it is an eventuality (barring things like digital mental upload and the like which might be possible), doesn't mean it's not concerning to people.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by Chen View Post
    Not being able to do things tends to be something people want to avoid. You know, so they can continue experiencing things.
    But why? It makes no sense, that's just how it is.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    But we don't live in the wild anymore.

    I find it funny on how many guys want to go back to the uncivilized ages, with all this talk of alpha males and other nonsense.
    It has nothing to wanting to go back to uncivilized ages. Our bodies are hardwired to avoid death for as long as we are able to. The very fact that we are having this conversation is proof that you've taken at least the minimum amount of effort to stay alive up to this point. You eat food, drink water, sleep, breathe, and avoid danger. That's because you subconsciously do not want your life to end yet. Heck, why does civilization exist in the first place? Because it made it easier to survive.

    I'd also imagine that fear of death is similar to fear of imprisonment. Both of them mean the end of being able to do the things we love doing. Some people would choose the former over the latter. At least when your dead you don't have to go on feeling that your life is over.
    Last edited by An Enemy Spy; 2018-02-26 at 04:25 PM.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    It's a fact that everyone is going to die one day, whya re people so afraid of it?

    it's like being afraid that the sky is blue, it just is, there is nothing you can do about it.

    I really don't get what the fuss is all about.
    I detect a lack of imagination in the Force. People fear death because the Universe might be keeping score and having something in store for people who don't measure up.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    But why? It makes no sense, that's just how it is.
    Why what? Why do people like experiencing things? Because that's basically all of what existence IS.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by Chen View Post
    Why what? Why do people like experiencing things? Because that's basically all of what existence IS.
    Why people care that they won't be experiencing things anymore? It's not like they will be there NOT experiencing things, do you get what I mean?
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    Why people care that they won't be experiencing things anymore? It's not like they will be there NOT experiencing things, do you get what I mean?
    It's like the difference between not wanting to rip off a band-aid and not wanting to have had ripped off a band-aid. Sure, once the thing is off you don't mind, but actually pulling the darn thing off is just the worst. Now expand that band-aid out to your entire existence. I mean, I'm betting you wouldn't like it if I came into your room and smashed up your computer, right? Well death is smashing up your computer, your house, any friends or family you have, everything you've ever learned, liked, disliked, and the capacity to even know what any of that is. That's a lot to lose all in one instant.
    Last edited by An Enemy Spy; 2018-02-26 at 04:45 PM.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    To me is like beign afraid of something, and then being afraid because someone told you won't have to do it.

    Like you hate sweeping floors, then someone tells you won't have to sweep the floor during summer and you are afraid of sweeping floors anyway.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Death, in fact, is NOT "just the way it is". That is the basic fallacy in your stance.

    Yes, all things die. But when they die, how they die and why they die all differ. And, even in the simplest monist materialist view, what happens after they die also differs based on all prior mentioned factors. (In case someone struggles to grok this, let me point out that you need not invoke any shape or form of afterlife to worry about who gets your insurance money.)

    As a result, there are countless different reasons to fear the countless different deaths, many of which are completely avoidable.

    Only someone in nihilistic despair ought to think it's all the same.

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    It's all the same where you go, cavalry man
    All the same where your life would meet its end
    Even the prettiest roses wither and autumn breaths forth death
    Night once gifts rest to the wanderer

    The joy of wine is just a brief delusion
    And the most beautiful song chimes for a mere moment
    Let your creed be the vanity of vanities
    And in land of Hades it will all be forgotten

    The roses of love once bloomed for you
    And the reddest lips vowed themselves to you
    But even dearest vows vanish like a Will'o'wisp
    The heat of a kiss just a passing mirage

    It's all the same when you'll die, cavalry man
    All the same when your life should meet its end
    For the blackest roses always bloom in gardens of Hades
    It's all the same when you should die, cavalry man
    "It's the fate of all things under the sky,
    to grow old and wither and die."

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    To me is like beign afraid of something, and then being afraid because someone told you won't have to do it.

    Like you hate sweeping floors, then someone tells you won't have to sweep the floor during summer and you are afraid of sweeping floors anyway.
    Well then I'm happy for you because the day you die will just be another uneventful evening for you. That's a huge thing not to have to worry about.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by Donnadogsoth View Post
    I detect a lack of imagination in the Force. People fear death because the Universe might be keeping score and having something in store for people who don't measure up.
    As an agnostic leaning atheist, I don't believe in an afterlife, but am still scared of death.

    I like existence, existence has been good to me. I don't want it to end.

    P.S. Someone once said that your life after death is exactly like your life was before birth. That gives me no comfort, because oblivion is scary. Although, I don't mind sleeping even though I tend not to dream, so maybe death will be like that slumber and I just won't wake up.
    Last edited by Joran; 2018-02-26 at 04:53 PM.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by An Enemy Spy View Post
    Well then I'm happy for you because the day you die will just be another uneventful evening for you. That's a huge thing not to have to worry about.
    Thanks, you are much too kind sir.

    I still don't get why people are afraid of dying though.

    Quote Originally Posted by Frozen_Feet View Post
    As a result, there are countless different reasons to fear the countless different deaths, many of which are completely avoidable.
    It still all end up the same, it just ends, no matter how or why. It's the same end, the same result.
    Last edited by The Eye; 2018-02-26 at 04:53 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    Like you hate sweeping floors, then someone tells you won't have to sweep the floor during summer and you are afraid of sweeping floors anyway.
    That's a really, really bad analogy. Death is not like sweeping floors--unless you're in a situation where you can't ever come back from sweeping floors once you start, and I think a fair few people *would* be afraid of sweeping floors if they were told that was the case.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Also, death is easy to rationalize away when it's not an immediate concern. You have the luxury of being flippant about death when you're reasonably confident that you have several decades standing in between it and yourself. If there were a gun pressed to your head right now I'm sure the difference between life and death would seem much more stark.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by factotum View Post
    That's a really, really bad analogy. Death is not like sweeping floors--unless you're in a situation where you can't ever come back from sweeping floors once you start, and I think a fair few people *would* be afraid of sweeping floors if they were told that was the case.
    Just change that to "won't be experiencing things anymore" and there you have it.

    Quote Originally Posted by An Enemy Spy View Post
    Also, death is easy to rationalize away when it's not an immediate concern. You have the luxury of being flippant about death when you're reasonably confident that you have several decades standing in between it and yourself. If there were a gun pressed to your head right now I'm sure the difference between life and death would seem much more stark.
    To be honest with you, err.. Is trigger warning still a thing? Anyway.

    There was a time I was kind of suicidal and it was ironically very liberating, when you feel you have nothing to lose you just do the things you have in mind.

    But that's a very valid point, maybe I'll change my mind when I get very old and closer to death.
    Last edited by The Eye; 2018-02-26 at 04:58 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    I am not afraid of death, i am afraid of the sickness and pain (and sometimes lack of dignity) that precedes death. Death by itself is another step in the way or the End, either way there is nothing to fear.

    I think many people share my thoughts.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    Just change that to "won't be experiencing things anymore" and there you have it.
    Um, no. Sweeping floors for a summer is temporary. Not experiencing things anymore is eternal.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by An Enemy Spy View Post
    Um, no. Sweeping floors for a summer is temporary. Not experiencing things anymore is eternal.
    But you won't be there not to NOT experience things, god I wish I could be as clear as I'm in my head.
    Last edited by The Eye; 2018-02-26 at 04:59 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by Nerd-o-rama View Post
    Excellent Chaotic Evil "roleplaying" The Eye. "The only people responsible for the welfare of or harm dealt to others are people who aren't me."
    "A clear horizon — nothing to worry about on your plate, only things that are creative and not destructive… I can’t bear quarreling, I can’t bear feelings between people — I think hatred is wasted energy, and it’s all non-productive." - Alfred Hitchcock

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    It still all end up the same, it just ends, no matter how or why. It's the same end, the same result.
    Yes yes, it's very easy to see why you'd think that, as if I take everything you've told of yourself at face value, you fit in the category of "is in nihilistic despair".
    "It's the fate of all things under the sky,
    to grow old and wither and die."

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    Why people care that they won't be experiencing things anymore? It's not like they will be there NOT experiencing things, do you get what I mean?

    As far as a practical result of my fear of dying, I've known many who died from motorcycle crashes, but I continued to ride despite the danger, but then my son was born.

    My death would negatively effect my sons, so I take more care to avoid death than I used to.

    Simple as that.

    Also if Achilles, via Odysseus via Homer via over two thousand years of troubadours and scribes who passed on the tale, are to be believed, Hades is lame and not somewhere to hurry to.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Got to say I'm not even a little suicidal and I'm the same as The eye.

    Death seems so natural to me, when you got to go you got to go, and old people and terminal pacients seem to think the same:

    https://www.theguardian.com/science/...ad-as-we-think
    https://www.huffingtonpost.com/karl-...b_4075769.html

    One thing that really helped me cope with the idea of death was Death from sandman and Death from Discworld.

    EDIT:

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    Kind off topic but what really bugs me is the idea of hell and heaven, it makes no sense for me, it's a paradox, heaven is supposed to be perfect and everyone there is happy, and hell is supposed to be eternal torture.

    Let's say I'm a virtuous mother with a terrible and horrible son.

    I love him despite that because... Mothers.

    We die, he goes to hell to be eternally tortured and I go to heaven to enjoy perfect happiness.

    How can I be happy knowing my son who I love is being tortured for eternity? it makes no sense.



    EDIT 2: One thing that seems to make people afriad of death is attachment, love and worry for the people who stay.
    Last edited by S@tanicoaldo; 2018-02-26 at 05:50 PM.
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    So I beg for forgiveness, patience and comprehension.

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    Default Re: Why are people afraid of death?

    Quote Originally Posted by The Eye View Post
    Thanks, you are much too kind sir.

    I still don't get why people are afraid of dying though.



    It still all end up the same, it just ends, no matter how or why. It's the same end, the same result.
    Make sure you don't change your argument. There's a big difference between being afraid of death and being afraid of dying.

    I'n not afraid of being dead. I know my time will end and (given some of my health issues and my wife's as well I suspect we'll both be content).

    But neither of us wants to DIE badly, both in the physical and metaphysical sense.

    Dying in my sleep at the age of 90 after winning a marathon the day before is great.

    Dying slowly burning to death in a fire is not so great.

    Dying rescuing kids from that fire would then make it great (painful but worth it).

    Dying in a manner predicted for Fox Mulder by Clyde Bruckman... well, you get the picture.

    Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there are people who are afraid of death. But I'm sure more people are afraid of a BAD death (in all meanings of the word BAD).
    "That's a horrible idea! What time?"

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