Death, the Final Frontier
by Charles Dunn (kudos1@ukgateway.net)
BA (Hons)
Author’s brief:
The question of human destiny remains unfulfilled. The focus of this
paper aims not only to demonstrate this, but will debate furthermore our
future potential. By focusing in the main on that which is central to all
known faiths i.e. the concept of ‘immortality’, attention will be drawn
as to why this belief emerged, why it has prevailed throughout the millennia,
and why it is anything other than being in a sense ‘illusory’.
In Denial of Death, Becker suggests that the reality of our physical
mortality constitutes the fundamental human terror, and our efforts to
come to terms with it “is a mainspring of human activity--activity designed
largely to avoid the fatality of death, to overcome it by denying in some
way that it is the final destiny for man.”
Although a measure of such ‘activity’ remains precisely
unknown, there clearly exist a number of factors implicit to this extent.
These include, as Becker infers, by procreating genetic matter, or perhaps
by attaining global renown. However, arguably the most apparent means of
claiming a stake to ‘immortal splendour’ is via a faith of kind. Indeed,
the growth science may have rocked the foundations of religion world over,
yet the need to have faith remains strong.
Could therefore, the human condition be predisposed to religious beliefs
(Wilson 1978), for just the same reason it hungers for sex and kudos perchance
moreover?
On the one hand, it would be fair to say that sex
isn't good for nothing, however, such pleasure derived is the bait of a
process that aims to continue genetic life. Kudos however, is doubtless
sought for not least the following reasons. Initially, the object of kudos
in theory at least, could take more partners than would be probable, if
the reverse were true.
Second, yet more crucially however, is the chance
to become a historical icon. Although religion moreover concerns the notion
of immortality, it may be argued one is drawn to an end thus quite distinct.
For in contrast to becoming nothing more than diluted genetic matter, or
another dead star in the over-crowded historical cosmos or both, one may
through faith exist after death within yet another dimension. For as all
known faiths at heart manifest a claim to this extent, it must therefore
be the extent to which religious endeavour transpires.
Alas however, the exposé of reason has all
but shown this claim to be illusory, in short it would have nothing more
than a product of human nature. Yet despite this fact, no single theory
can fully debate without question, why we have come to conceive in that
which simply doesn’t exist.
Granted, the negation of death may have served to
bind the illiterate small-scale culture, however, the same it seems cannot
be said of those that are far more advanced. The Marxist may view eternal
salvation as verbal smack for the pain of oppression, yet according to
Weber, the entrepreneur was far from being agnostic. If reason therefore,
cannot fully gauge why thus we have come to conceive this illusion, then
perhaps human nature to this extent remains at best unsound. However, it
is more than likely this notion arose from a psyche not prone to conceive
the fantastic, but one more inclined to maintaining existence well beyond
current parameters.
Hence, the idea of extending the temporal time clock
is thus by no means modern. As data suggests, primitive people were buried
with tools and clothing, to equip them no doubt for what they envisaged
was life in the next dimension. Although it remains somewhat vague as to
when this belief emerged however, it is broadly held as one which evolved
in relation to homo~sapien. Thus at first hand, it seems quite bizarre,
that we should evolve to contemplate death as being in-essence unnatural.
For is death notwithstanding a facet of life to which all must inevitably
yield?
As we gaze toward the ashened sky do orbs not once
resplendent, now serve as buoys to verify this universal maxim! Yet, as
we pale into cosmic significance, a token sense of smugness prevails, for
the star moreover, knows not its fate, whereas we on the other hand do.
Thus on reflection, it may not be bizarre for precisely this reason that
death is conceived as unnatural, for pathos not only shaped who we are,
but reminds us of what ought to follow.
Indeed, there exists good reason to think of pain
as the sinner amid all our emotions, though in effect it is more than likely
that quite the reverse is true. In defining terms, pain is a caution that
all is not good and well, yet turned aside no matter how slight must the
odds of survival increase. Although our existence does in itself reflect
this fact alone, arguably thus, lies a further stage of human progression
in waiting. For at no other time will pain as defined, serve to be more
efficient, other than when we come to know that death is close at hand.
Thus our quest for immortal life has a purely rational
basis, and is not resultant for want of say an ‘over-inflated ego’. If
pain furthermore is a feeling bestowed entirely by nature alone, then to
overturn death must in fact be a perfectly natural process.
There remains little doubt that religion emerged
to resolve the problem of death, and continues for many regardless of creed,
to reflect a simple maxim. For if one is conceived with no other purpose
in life except to survive, then life is a realm within which the reaper
has no place to reside.
It would of course be inept to conclude we are destined
to live forever, yet not so to state that we are in effect, destined to
have a choice. As current research therefore intends to make us forever
young, then perhaps one day we may have a choice, which is clearly better
than none!
Bibliography:
Clarke. P. B (1993). The World’s Religions. Reader’s Digest.
Haralambos. M & Holborn. M (1990). Sociology, Themes & Perspectives.
3rd Ed. Unwin Hyman.
Morrison. K (1996). Formations of Modern Social Thought. Sage.
Pinker. S (1998). How the Mind Works. Penguin.
Purves, Orians & Heller (1995). Life, the Science of Biology. 4th
Ed.
Sinauer Associates.
Schnabel. J (1998). Forever Young. Bloomsbury.
Stevenson. L (1987). Seven Theories of Human Nature. 2nd Ed.
Oxford University Press.
Wilson. E. O (1978). On Human Nature. Penguin.
References:
Becker, quoted in Afterlife. Naiman. C & Goldman. E. (1995).
