Death And Its Significance - Essay Example

? Death and its Significance By Introduction Death is the ending of life. When one’s life ends or is over, then they are considered dead. According to Fred Fieldman, for one to be able to completely comprehend death, then one has to be able to fully understand life (1992). Death has been known of its iniquity and obscurity. This has always given each person his or her own unique and different views about death. The attribute of mystery was given to death due to the inability of human beings to completely analyze it as they have not experienced it. The attribute of death being evil was picked up due to people not being able to justify a person’s death. Some people would have been better off alive than dead according to some people’s interpretation. The idea of death is however ruled out by Fieldman, as he considers dead people not to have any feeling whatsoever lest an opinion (1992).His perception of a dead person thus means that he has become non-existent. Death in Medieval/ Middle Ages In the medieval years, death was viewed as a way of life. Everyone had the concept that that was where they were all headed; that they would eventually die. This shows that people in the middle ages were more proverbial with the term death and what it actually brought. It was more welcome in their lives than feared (Aries, 1974). They were all resigned to their fate, which was to die. This was the eventuality of everyone and everything. People’s experience with death began at birth where in communities like the African ones, new-borns were named after those who had already passed on. They considered it a reincarnation or rebirth of their loved ones who had already passed on. This was probably in a bid to keep their memories alive and the belief that there was life after death. This is how Buddhists view death even up to date. They are at ease with death and just think of it as relocation, where one moves from one place to another or switching houses for a particular convenience. In the ancient times, the thought of death was rather comforting than it is worrying in the days we now live in. It was as if they had a premonition of death and were somewhat prepared for it waiting for the day it come knocking at their door. It was as if they had it all figured out; the surrendering of oneself to death (a better place full of peace and serenity) until it was time to return to this world by being reborn. The middle ages’ people saw death as this obvious and restrained thing la mort apprivoisee; which is a complete opposite of the present times, where death is seen as strange and feared by people. These people also had mourning and burial rituals and traditions that followed a death encounter. This again is in support of how the people in those times were at ease with death and were prepared for the loss that comes with death. Death was a rite of passage in life. Death in Present Times In most recent times, death has become a taboo rarely spoken about and with myths surrounding it. It is still though a mystery but people have become more detached from it due to fear of the ‘evil’ that is mostly accompanied with death (Aries, 1974). Instead of people accepting death as a way of life like in the past ages, they are forced to actually be terrified of death. Death is now met with anxiety as people wonder what will happen to them later. People grief their loved ones and some even go to the extent of mental depression due to the loss of their loved ones. In addition, people have now become attached to their earthly possessions such as pets, and things like power and wealth. These things matter more to human beings so much that the thought of being away from them is too scary to even think about. Instead of the resignation which usually met death in early ages, people panic at the thought of dying, or otherwise losing their loved ones (Aries, 1974). The universally accepted notion that everyone is bound to die has now become completely forgotten such that an estranged person would rather live to see their loved ones in pain day in day out with medications that are supposed to keep them alive than see them die. According to Philippe Aries, death is now viewed as some sort of challenge in which the fate of their soul was somewhat set in an equilibrium. Human beings now have things like becoming a Buddha, going to hell or heaven to worry about such that death has now become a contentious issue. There is also more prominence in the separation of people with their loved ones being faced with distraught and loss after the death of a loved one. These things now more than ever pose a great deal in the human way of life. There is also no emphasis placed on the death rituals as more and more people die in hospitals rather than in the comfort of their homes. In the most recent years, human beings perception of death has made a complete turnaround. Ceremonies after a persons’ passing are either too short or not done at all. This has seen today’s beliefs on death become more and more distanced from those of the past (Aries, 1985). There have also been instances of people actually refusing to accept death and tend to have their loved ones embalmed in a statue. In some cases, they cremate the body and keep the ashes as a living reminder of their loved ones. They refuse to completely part from their loved ones. In this way, they get to even in their own remote thoughts keep the dead living. Aries still holds hope that one day death will become once again accepted by the human race as a way of life (Aries, 1981). Attributes Given to Death There are certain attributes that have been given to death. These attributes have a great impact on the human perspective on death and even goes a step further to actually dictate the way in which we live our lives. Death is a mystery needless to say. No person has actually gone through and come back to give a testimony. This mystery is what makes people afraid of the unseen, unheard, and unspoken of. The fact that no one can actually attest to what death is makes death an obscurity that is not unraveling in the near future. According to Fieldman, no one has ever been able to give a full analysis of death ever since the primitive ages (1992). Even testimonies of near death experiences are usually too vague and different in many cases such that it is hard to actually derive a conclusion from them. Buddhists also have their own descriptions of death; they define death as a beautiful sleep, some actually testifying to have died. But then again having different versions of what death actually is, it has become hard for people to completely make a heed of this mystery that is death. Death is also presumed by many to be evil. The ‘angel of death’ is always symbolized with a man in dark clothes. The symbolic representation of death even in films is the Grim reaper who is usually a skeleton with an overflowing black gown and a reaping sickle with a long handle. This is s sight, which to every person represents evil in every sense of the word. The grim is derived from the symbolic representation of the devil. In our minds, the devil is the thing to be most frightened of, such that death is the devil coming to reap souls. This once again raising the anxiety human beings have about the fate of their souls (William 1992). This pushes people to the place where they will find solace, comfort, and assurance like religion. The thought of heaven as a better place to go, assures us that death is not entirely a bad thing. There is also assurance that we will get to be rebounded with our loved ones that is we live upright lives. Just like the opposite of living righteous lives, one will end up going to hell, where there will only be eternal torture. Death is also said to be permanent. Scientists have tried to come up with ways in which someone’s heart is stopped and then resuscitated. This gives a misconception that one can die and come back which is misleading and a thing of misinformation. In a case where one is probably cut into pieces, i.e. cells in the body dissociated like in the case of a disassembler-reassembler, and then these pieces cum atoms are then again put together in the same exact way they were, then the person dies in between the dissociation and reassembling of the cells. After the reassembling, then the person’s life is restored as the person was beyond revival. This till leaves a puzzle on what life actually entails. Knowing the brevity associated with life, and the way, in which death can permanently take that life away from them, people will tend to live safer lives. In addition, people will be more courteous and fear death more; once again, death becomes a factor by which we weigh how to live our lives. Multicultural diversity creates a diverse reaction and belief to death. There cross-cultural perspectives on death, this makes the issues arising from death diverse (Sherwin, 1993). One’s understanding of these diversity, simplifies one’s professional work especially in the case of doctors, psychiatrists or any other professional that will handle the dead or deal with the deceased family. It is important for health practitioners to respect people’s cultural beliefs and preferences and try as much to have them upheld. For instance, some cultures prefer to have their dead cremated than buried. Some due to religious preferences and beliefs prefer not to have their relatives in coma put on life support machines. This means that the infirmary, a person’s folks, communal facilities, and cultural ideals all make up part of the environment in which individuals die (William, 1992). Death also brings up the issues of morality. Fieldman for instance, does not think that there is anything wrong with killing basing his argument on the reason behind the killing (1992). He goes on to say that life is there to be enjoyed and everyone has the right to enjoy it. But in the instance where keeping a person alive brings them more torture and pain than is opposed to ending his life, then one would rather put them out of their misery. This is in support of annihilation of terminally ill patients. Abortion, also according to Fieldman is justifiable. This brings up the question; on what grounds should we base death? Belshaw though, goes on to say that a person can be brain dead and still be alive so pulling the plug off the life support machine of a coma patient is inadvently wrong and is murder (2009). He goes on to say that the opposite is also true; that a one’s brain could be alive but the person is dead (Belshaw, 2009). Conclusion Death is the ending of life. Despite being certain conceptions that there is consciousness after death and the debate between brain dead and being actually dead, death being the end of life still stands out as a similarity. Death has thus been seen to have a big impact on the way people choose to live their lives. Having the full knowledge that people will eventually die, over the years people have changed their perceptions on death. Some have chosen to be resigned and accept their fate, while others chose to completely hang on to life. References Aries, P. (1974). Western Attitudes towards Death: From Middle Ages to Present. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press. Aries, P. (1981). The Hour of Our Death. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Aries, P. (1985). Images of Man and Death. Cambridge M.A: Harvard University Press Belshaw, C. ( 2009). Annihilation: The Sense and Significance of Death. Stockfield UK: Acumen Fieldman, F. (1992). Confrontations with the Reaper: A philosophical study of Nature and Value of Death. New York: Oxford University Press. Sherwin, N. (1993). How we die: reflections on Life’s Final Chapter. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. pp278 William, D. (1992). Death and Dying, Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhaven Press. Chapt.1 Read More