Lewis Thomas reaches out to all victims in death’s reach to assuage their fear of dying. Thomas wants his readers to understand that they cannot escape death; it is an “indispensible part of living.” Instead of just throwing the topic of death into his reader’s faces, he tries to slowly ease them into it. Starting with the death of a tree, it is something so miniscule and less emotional. It allows Lewis to bring up the topic of death without bringing up so many emotions. Then to head deeper into the conversation he talks about the death of a small animal, a mouse. By bringing up the idea of something that is living and breathing it opens the reader’s heart to let more emotions flow. Lewis’s final barrier is broken when he starts discussing …show more content…
I closed my eyes in order, it seemed to me, to help push it out, and took pleasure in growing languid and letting myself go. It was an idea that was only floating on the surface of my soul, as delicate and feeble as all the rest, but in truth not only free from distress but mingled with that sweet feeling that people have who have let themselves slide into sleep. I believe that this is the same state in which people find themselves whom we see fainting in the agony of death, I find that there is nothing like coming close to it.” “If you know not how to die, never trouble yourself; Nature will in a moment fully and sufficiently instruct you; she will exactly do that business for you; take you no care for it.”
By involving this real life story it gives the readers something to hold onto. They can take from the story and know that it happens to everybody but for most it is easy and painless. Knowing that some people in this world wouldn’t take him or the story seriously, he appeals to his audience’s logic. In paragraph 6, he uses all types of medical terms to explain what happens when death occurs. Lewis establishes his medical authority so the reader will believe him when he explains that death is virtually painless. He wants the reader to be able to investigate death without having to feel or experience the fear of
When Lee first introduced his readers, he started off with a beautiful metaphor to summarize how every human’s life goes as he wrote, “We are circuit boards swallowing the electricity of life upon birth,” (Lines 2 to 3, Lee). To clarify, Lee is explaining the beauty of life when we are alive and how we essentially use this electricity to create unforgettable memories along with emphasizing the importance of existing. However, not long into the poem, a sudden change in the emotion occurs as Lee depicted Stephen’s death with, “…as though his chest were an auditorium his life an audience leaving single file,” (Lines 24 to 25, Lee). In consideration with how the main lesson Lee was applying on his poem, it is easily visible that this sudden change in mood was done purposefully. With this dark simile, readers will be captured and feel that sudden shock in mixed emotion when someone’s death occurs. In effect, not only will readers who have seen death understand, but Lee also taught readers who have not seen a similar event what will happen, allowing any reader to understand the topic even without any past experiences. Quickly after though, Lee re-introduces a cheerful environment with similes to describe the people he has found as he visualized, “…his lungs flapping like sails,” and, “…teeth shinning like
Death has feelings as much as any human, imagining, getting bored, distracted, and especially wondering (350, 243, 1, 375 respectively). Odd, one could say for an eternal metaphysical being. But then again, not that queer once having considered how Death spends his time. He is there at the dying of every light, that moment that the soul departs its physical shell, and sees the beauty or horror of that moment. Where to a human witnessing a death first hand (even on a much more detached level than our narrator) can easily be a life changing event, Death is forced to witness these passings for nearly every moment of his eternal life. Emotional overload or philosophical catalyst? Death gains his unique perspective on life through his many experiences with the slowly closing eyelids and muttered last words. Yet in this...
Is it possible to live without fear of death? If you can, does it change your life and who you are as a whole? Lindqvist believes so. Early in the book he proposes the idea that with fear of death life has a deeper meaning. That only with the fear of death do...
The mind becomes poisoned when you let these feelings control personal tranquility. "For when your mind is tranquil, All your ill-thoughts simply c...
In the short story “The Reach,” Stephen King addresses the fact that in life there is a constant fear of death, but when confronted with it is easier to accept when someone has seen many deaths and knows that they are dying themselves. The narrator of the story knows that she is dying and, being an elder, has seen many deaths. We reach this conclusion when she questions the love she has for others and no longer cries when others die around her anymore. She has seen many deaths in the years and can only accept that death is inevitable and a part of life. Mostly everyone she grew up with has passed on already.
In the biography C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller by Janet and Geoff Benge, several moments and images are portrayed showing vitality in their writing. Countless experiences aided to the changes that took place in C.S. Lewis’s life, and each affair displayed vital conceptions which illustrated clever pictures for one’s mind. From the deaths in his family and even being thrown into the heat of the battlefield, like in World War 1, one could feel as if they were experiencing the battle themselves. For example one scene is describing Lewis while he watched several men dying from either side trying to gain a portion of no-man’s land (Benge & Benge, 2007, p. 58), the scene is depicted being littered with dead bodies and barbed wire surrounding deep trenches of the battle.
for death is not an adventure to those who stand face to face with it. It will try simply to tell of a
Virginia Woolf’s essay “Death of the Moth” describes her encounter with a moth as it fights furiously to escape her windowpane before it is claimed by death. The speaker’s first instinct as they intently watch the moth’s struggle is to help it, but as she goes to do so, they realize that the moth is engaged in the same inescapable struggle faced by all living creatures as they try to prevent death from robbing them of life. By witnessing the moth’s death, the speaker is compelled to ponder the philosophical implications that incur within the circular pattern of life and death. She is conscious of death’s omnipotent inevitability, but concludes that the ever-present possibility of death serves as a primary motivational force necessary for life to have value and meaning. Since death cannot be overpowered, the way an individual struggles to survive and preserve life even in its final moments is more valuable than the mundane, meaningless activities pursued with apathy.
“Death, the end of life: the time when someone or something dies” (Merriam-Webster, 2014). The definition of death is quite simple, the end of life is inescapable. I chose to write about death and impermanence because it is something we all must inevitably face. People often deal with death in a number of different ways. Although it is something that we must eventually face, it can be hard to come to terms with because the idea can be hard to grasp. Some of us fear it, others are able to accept it, either way we all must eventually face it. In this essay I will look at two different literary works about death and impermanence and compare and contrast the different elements of the point of view, theme, setting, and symbolism. The comparison of these particular works will offer a deeper look into words written by the authors and the feelings that they experiencing at that particular time.
Death is an unfortunate and yet inevitable part of life. This tragic life event has been brought to life in the haunting poems,"Clearances","Not Waving but Drowning" and "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night". In the poem "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night," author Dylan Thomas is speaking about avoiding death despite this the tone of the poem has a calm demeanor. These poems take the morbid idea of life and display the intertwining beauty seen in both life and death. The eloquent words in the poems demonstrate a frightening part of life in a way that gives a sense of hope that even in death life lives on.
"'Carpe Diem'('seize the day') is a Latin phrase which has come to denote an important literary motif especially common in lyric poetry: the encouragement to make the most of present life while it lasts, or to 'live for the moment," (The UVic Writer's Guide). Both Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" and Dylan Thomas's "Do Not Go Gentle" explore the idea that people should attempt to live life to its fullest. Thomas's poem, written to his father, employs a very emotional, pleading style that deeply appeals to the audience, while Frost's poem, a series of thoughts about his own eventual death, exhibits a more pensive, practical, subtle style that craftily forces the audience to think of their own eventual demise. The themes of the two poems are similar in that both explain that death is impending, that people should not take for granted the time they have left on earth, and that people need courage to face death and to realize when death can wait. Thomas, however, strongly believes that people should take an active role in what happens to them during their lives as evident in his fervent, cogent tone, while Frost believes that each person has an appropriate time to die, and that people should try to accomplish their obligations before they let themselves give in to death's temptation.
Thomas Nagel begins his collection of essays with a most intriguing discussion about death. Death being one of the most obviously important subjects of contemplation, Nagel takes an interesting approach as he tries to define the truth as to whether death is, or is not, a harm for that individual. Nagel does a brilliant job in attacking this issue from all sides and viewpoints, and it only makes sense that he does it this way in order to make his own observations more credible.
According to Ernest Becker, “The main thesis of this book is that it explains: the idea of death, the fear of death that haunts humans like nothing else; the mainspring of human activity designed to avoid the fatality of death, to overcome it by denying in some way that it is the final destiny for man” (“Becker” ix). The author of this book describes and quotes many other psychological thinkers views on the different kinds of fear and what contributes to the fear of death in man. The author explores several topics like self-worth, heroism, fear, anxiety, depression and many other issues throughout this book.
In Lewis Thomas’s short story “On Natural Death” he talks about mouse being killed by a cat and how the mouse really feels no pain during his process of dying because of the hormones being released into his body. He then quotes Montaigne and what he had to say about his own personal experience with death and how death should not be worried about.
Our days are counted on this earth. We start as innocent babies, grow into adventurous adolescents, and age into elderly individuals We can wish to live hundreds of years; however, we have to understand that age and death are inevitable and they will sneak up on us. It is understandable that aging and dying are two things human beings fear, simply because they are never an everyday conversational topic. We live our lives with hefty amounts of laughter, grace, and strength. We build strong relationships with those we love or sometimes we exclude ourselves from the people we love. Yet, when we least expect it, those joyous moments are forever gone. Day by day we are aging and becoming closer to the realization of death. It is hard for many to realize that one-day we’re here, and by the next we’re gone. As a result, they take life for granted and ultimately lose the real sense of life. Unfortunately, when life begins to come to an end, many people become weak and hopeless. Yet, some people grow a different perspective and begin to live life differently. Clearly, it is important for people to be ready to face adversity and challenges. Although Dylan Thomas’s “Do not go gentle into that good night” and Joan Aleshire’s “Slipping” discuss similar themes about embracing life before it’s too late, they evoke different responses in the reader by the use of imagery, tone, and form.