Only thing keeping humans functioning on a daily basis is their fear of death

Meatpie

OWNER/ADMIN
Staff member
Administrator
Joined
Oct 7, 2008
Messages
59,852
Location
Bulgaria
[h=1]
quote-the-idea-of-death-the-fear-of-it-haunts-the-human-animal-like-nothing-else-it-is-a-mainspring-ernest-becker-66-30-64.jpg


Cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker wrote in his famous book
The Denial of Death that the only thing keeping humans functioning on a daily basis is their fear of death and that if we were to confront our own oblivion we would be frozen to the spot.[/h]
[h=1]Do you agree or disagree?[/h]
 
"The basic motivation for human behavior is our biological need to control our basic anxiety, to deny the terror of death. Human beings are naturally anxious because we are ultimately helpless and abandoned in a world where we are fated to die. “This is the terror: to have emerged from nothing, to have a name, consciousness of self, deep inner feelings, an excruciating inner yearning for life and self-expression—and with all this yet to die.

Excerpt from the book "The Denial of Death"

 
Let me think... Just suppose that death don't exist...

Boredom is a great motivator. Unless people surrender to idleness and internalised the boredom. Frozen on the spot still. No need to deny death. After all, the world is mostly not what it is presented to us. Paradigms are shifting.

Hypothetically of course. That's why people have back stories and concepts. Only robots programmed with death and oblivion will freeze. Are you a robot? I don't want to be robot. As disgusting as the human body is with the pooping and the peepeeing, robots are way lamer. Sure they are cool in some aspects but humans are more intriguing. Alive ones and dead ones. Who cares about a dead iPhone?!

ps That song "It's a small world after all!" is shit. The world is probably much bigger.
 
In his book Becker suggests that our death anxiety may also be subconscious and that our entire culture is build around ways to fight this anxiety.

Everything from architecture, politics, healthcare, wars and even genocide.
 
I have trouble comprehending anything so philosophical. Mr. Becker may be thinking too hard, but I'm probably not thinking hard enough. I just know I like pictures...of naked guys. That's what keeps me functioning.
 
Your subconscious fear of death may be driving you necro through reaction-formation.

You come here to look at pics of dead guys so that you can find relief for your deep inner fear of your own mortality.

Some psychologists even think all necros are actually fearfull of the dead and dying in general.
 
Hmmm, I do recognize that I'm attracted to what frightens me, but I thought everyone was.
 
Everyone is according to modern trends in psychology.

I am not necessarily supportive of these ideas but I read Becker's book and liked it. He died from colon cancer aged just 49. He was very brave in the face of death according to those who knew him and spent time with him before his death in 1974.
 
We are all supposed to be getting regular colonoscopies to catch that sort of cancer early. Not me -- I'd rather die like Mr. Becker than let a "health care professional" perform such a procedure on me.
 
Let me think... Just suppose that death don't exist...

immortality ... what Isaac Newton would give to witness the modern physics as we know it today ...
The first to achieve the sweet immortality will be the person who will bring chaos to the world. Always when I stop to think about it I enter an infinite loop, if I'm alone I can spend hours and hours thinking without reaching any conclusion.


And in my humble opinion I do not think the fear of death drives people. I think that the fear of death and the awareness that it will arrive is the spark that will ignite the flame that will take the person out of his beginnings and passive state to seek his place in the world.
But for me, this thought of this book explains me completely.
 
Philosophically I partly agree with what he said. it is inspiring and thoughtful and not totally baseless. But scientifically, I think I need more proof supporting that theory. Modern science is based on experiment and careful deduction, which I have learnt neither about it. But I doubt the theory has them, for the psychology with only less than a century years old has too little time to fully build itself. It's not that I'm saying what psychology says right now are nonsense, yet psychology lacks the reliability and credibility for you to treat it as fact, comparing with other subjects like physic and science. For example, chemist are always joked by physicist as alchemist as well as chemistry as non-science. It's very embarrassed to admit but not purely joking because you can hardy find one theory having both theoretical supports and extensive application to all evidence in chemistry. The attitude towards a lot of thesis is that as long as it's applicable in industry and laboratory, no one will and can proof its correctness until more evident comes, and the result of it is too many thesis are unrepeatable thus actually useless. It is same for psychology, only much worse since psychology is much more complicated and much harder to conducting creditable experiment. It's not kidding that most of the psychology thesis in hing-ranked journals are unrepeatable, so my recommendation is just to take them as thoughtful advice but put too much faith in them, or you may want to learn and proof yourself.
 
I think that the fear of death and the awareness that it will arrive is the spark that will ignite the flame that will take the person out of his beginnings and passive state to seek his place in the world.

Exactly what Becker was trying to say. You are repeating his words so you agree with him.
 
Back
Top