The concept of reincarnation is present through countless forms in media and cultures around the world. Defined as the idea that the soul is reborn in a different body or form after death, reincarnation can simply be a belief or even used as a coping mechanism in the face of death. In David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas and Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain, they explore reincarnation and how a person’s disposition towards death influences their actions and attitudes in specific ways, whether it be fear, acceptance or denial. Split between six different timelines and characters, Cloud Atlas follows their lives and how they all connect together. The Fountain, however, explores the life of a scientist across three centuries and his desire to save his wife. Although Cloud Atlas and The Fountain share …show more content…
When he finally arrives at the safe house, he is appalled to learn that the ‘safe house’ was in fact a nursing home for the elderly. Cavendish believes that instead of running away from the hands of death, he has walked right into its grasp. He loses his sense of reason after he finds out what his relative has done, and throws a temper tantrum, hurting himself and one of the caretakers in the process. In comparison, Tommy, one of the main characters in The Fountain, is afraid of death due to the fact that it can take away loved ones in the blink of an eye. Living in the twenty-first century, Tommy is a scientist working to find a cure for degenerative brain diseases. He is determined to do whatever it takes to find a cure due to the fact his wife, Izzi, is diagnosed with a severe brain tumour. Although Izzi is at peace with her future and eventual death, Tommy is in denial as he is adamant that he is able to save her. Consequently, this leads to him putting work first in order to find a cure, instead of
One of the themes that explain the story “The Deep” is that life is a cycle because everyone is born and everyone dies. This describes the story because when a person is young and gets sick they don't have or worry about anything but when you become old once you catch a cold they could get very sick and die this is one example of what happened to Tom
“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.
Life and death are leaves us with an known and unknown that are unavoidable. In the poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost symbolism, rhyme, and allusion are used to describe not only nature’s life cycle but the human life cycle as well. The allegory “Used to Live Here Once” by Jean Rhys uses symbolism and motif to deliver a story of a woman who has died but is unaware that she has actually passed away. Even though both of these pieces of literature utilize similar elements that symbolize the human life cycle in their writings they are very different in nature, and the poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay” leaves you with an actual reality of all beings lifecycles and the allegory leaves you with imagination only.
Considering the arguments from Plato’s Phaedo argue: “Death is not the end and we ought not fear it.” Souls are immortal and continue to live after the body has died. The theories of recollection and opposites are sensible and Socrates can justify them.
Since the beginning of time, and for long past the unimaginable, life has begun with the pretense that death is the fate for all persons. Many have tried to escape this destiny, many have tried to alter it or postpone it; however, from the first page of every story, every word used to describe the events held closest to one’s heart brings the final sentence closer and closer. The concept of time has been perceived to be linear in nature; while we attempt to analyze the past and better our future – the majority of concern is focused on the present. We are a world of now, often forgetting what has gotten us to the current and often forgetting what we must do for the later. Past, present and future: these terms represent stories and events across generations; although, as a species, our nature hasn’t changed much during these periods. Gabriel García Márquez’s novel One Hundred Years of Solitude critiques this trait in man – while the characters and setting may change, the stories always seem to remain the same. One Hundred Years of Solitude’s timeline exhibits these facts by adopting a cyclical concept of time. The terms past, present, and future no longer represent a boundary between ages; instead, the past is the future, the future is the present, and the present is the past. The novel is told across six generations of the Buendía family – subsequently, the reader quickly can see that the blessings and curses of one generation are not excluded from the others. Márquez raises many questions concerning the nature of man and the dealing with the destiny of death. Furthermore, the author uses a cyclical timeline to criticize the unending nature of man; the lines between past, present, and future...
J. W. Dunlap, an educational specialist and a medium, in her article “REINCARNATION AND SURVIVAL OF LIFE AFTER DEATH,” defines reincarnation as life being eternal and with a purpose that each individual will experience and continue to experience after death. The belief in reincarnation is universal in certain aspect of the world; based on the lives of Africans and Native Americans there is a strong belief in the concept of reincarnation from past human history (Dunlap 157-170). Looking at some Africans, they have a strong belief in ancestral rebirth; they do not believe that once an ancestor died they will never see them again; they believe that it is just a separation and only temporary (Dunlap). Some Native Americans have a different view; they have a spiritual, philosophical view with regards to reincar...
The concept between life and death cannot simply exist without one another, where the topic is widely discussed throughout “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanithi. This memoir explores Paul’s definition of death as he passes through the distinct “stages” of his life. As Paul progresses through each stage, he views death differently as he transformed from a student to a neurosurgeon, neurosurgeon to a patient, and eventually becoming a father, where he needed to take full responsibility as an adult.
...eave one with a similar "air of tragedy". However, if we can gather the strength to adopt an authentic way of being, if we can see that we have a self to find and overcome the repression for selfhood, we can at the very least be freed from the mistaken view of death and thus, be freed from the irrational fear that normally accompanies it. The role of mortality in Heidegger's philosophy may be methodological and catalytic, but the import of mortality to Human Being, whether authentic or inauthentic is and always has been significant in conjunction with our cultural overlays and traditions. Heidegger's phenomenological view of death as a way-of-being is significant to us because it provides a workable alternative to the common dogmatic views of death and it can help to guide us through a profound existence, that is laden with the traps and pitfalls of inauthenticity.
These ideals have influenced our culture though our use of language and thought. The implications are apparent in the common references to one’s past lives. For instance, if someone has a natural talent for music one may refer to the person as being once a talented musician in a past life. A religion which describes death as a continuation of existance is held by the Crow tribe of middle America. They viewed death as a journey with the final destination as a place where all their anscestors have gone before them.
In the Phaedo Socrates claims that the soul is indeed immortal, that it lives forever and cannot die even after the body has died, thus philosophers spend their lives devaluing themselves from their body. Socrates presents the Theory of Recollection to persuade his fellow philosophers that have convened inside his cell that the soul is immortal. In essence, the recollection argument refers to the act of learning, because the soul is immortal, according to Socrates, then this suggests that when a person is learning something they are actually relearning it, because their soul has existed before they were born. This idea of recollecting knowledge is prominent and is the most convincing argument in proving the existence of immortality through the soul, however, this argument does not suggest that the soul continues to exist after death and lacks clarity regarding what truly happens after a person dies.
These two thought provoking stories take widely separate approaches on the idea of death. One being
Is there such a thing as free will, what is the relationship between mind and body, and the true difference between right and wrong are a few questions about human existence that have plagued philosophers and average men alike since the days of Socrates and Aristotle. While not everyone may pay these questions much attention, there is one philosophical thought that has probably crossed the mind of every human at some point in time, and that is the concept of death and what happens after. There are widespread thoughts about what happens postmortem which range from the idea of immortality during the days of the ancient Greeks to the belief in reincarnation that is associated with many Eastern religions. These beliefs, along with others similar to them, provide some with a sort of safety net because they know that their essence (soul, spirit, etc.) will continue to exist after they pass. That being said, not everyone shares these opinions and for some the idea of death can be frightening. Don DeLillo’s novel White Noise examines this fear through Jack Gladney and several other characters. While the novel does not offer any answers, it does stimulate thought regarding death in modern society and how it should be handled. Although many of the characters try to do things such as ignore or embrace their fear in order to get it off their minds, Jack cannot shake his angst, all of which mirroring the various reactions people in today’s society have regarding death.
Murray, David Christie. Reincarnation, Ancient Beliefs and Modern Evidence. London, England: David & Charles, 1981
The search for immortality is not an uncommon one in literature. Many authors and poets find contentment within the ideals of faith and divinity; others, such as Whitman and Stevens, achieve satisfaction with the concept of the immortality of mortality. This understanding of the cycle of death and rebirth dominates both Walt Whitman's "On the Beach at Night" and Wallace Stevens' "Sunday Morning" and demonstrates the poets' philosophies of worldly immortality.
Christians and Hindus both have sacred texts they believe in that will help guide them on the right path during their existence on earth and after they pass. The Christian Bible consists of sixty six books of the Old and New Testament scriptures. The Bible explains God’s actions in the world and his purpose with all creation. The Bible is a guide for living life to its fullest, it is a map for the journey of life. People who are in pain, suffering, or mourning will look to the Bible to find strength in their darkest hours. The Hindu sacred text is known as the Bhagavad Gita. Composed around 200 BC in ancient India, the Bhagavad Gita is a 700 verse script containing the eternal message of spiritual wisdom. The word Gita means song and the word Bhagavad means God, often the Bhagavad Gita is called “The Song of God.” The Bhagavad Gita contains knowledge about God, the ultimate truth, creation, birth and death, the results of actions, the eternal soul, liberation and the purpose of human existence.