# At what age is death most tragic?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-age-is-death-most-tragic/725813>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [July 21, 2015, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-age-is-death-most-tragic/725813 "2015-07-21T20:08:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\
**Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/at-what-age-is-death-most-tragic/725813/41 "2015-07-23T15:14:55Z")

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> [@Surreal](#):
>
> I’m surprised to see that so far about 30% have voted “this question is absurd.”
> 
> Really? Do you people really think that the death of the average 99-year-old is every bit as tragic as the death of a 9-year-old?

It depends. A perfectly healthy 99 year old killed by a drunk driver could be arguably more tragic than the death of a 9 year old with severe birth defects who was only expected to live 5 years. It’s not just age, but circumstance.

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