This thread is the first instance of this specific hypothetical I’ve seen discussed, but I have seen many instances of “Would you live forever?” and the false dilemma is always given as either: live as a normal human now, or live eternally with no option of ever ceasing to live.
It’s supposed to make you feel good about option A.
But it’s a ridiculous option B, that neither our universe, nor even vampire mythology, actually supports.
If we instead ask the question of normal duration life, or live indefinitely the answer, I think, is obvious.
For me I’d like to live a few centuries at least, to see if there’s other life in the universe, understand what dark matter et al are, experience higher levels of consciousness once humans understand more about the brain, etc. I’ll take the downsides of being a vampire for that.
Living ‘endlessly’ (how would that even work?) is never really an issue in this type of folklore. It takes little more than a couple of knives (during daylight hours) to take out Dracula. At least with Koshchei someone has to travel to some freaky Baltic island which nobody is sure exactly where it is, dig up a chest, catch a wild hare that springs out of it, and so forth.
Short-term, we humans panic because we constantly feel time ticking away. But without the brevity to put life into perspective, can we feel and appreciate the beauty of our surroundings? It’s a conundrum. I think I’d still go with life’s fragility and uncertainty. It’s too sad and beautiful to be replaced by the certainty of immortality. Immortality is like a concrete wall, in my opinion. You’re still existing, but you’re kind of not … special. Somehow. Tragedy is part of the experience.
Yes.
In fact, most of the time, my mortality is not something that I think about. It’s just an unpleasant realization that pops up from time to time.
Yeah and better still would be if we got punched in the stomach every morning, so we’d appreciate more all the experiences in life that are not being punched in the stomach.
I know this isn’t a debate thread, and I shouldn’t jump on people for their perfectly valid opinions, but the meme that life being short, with a lot of it spent in physical declne, is somehow better or even optimal, grinds my gears.
If there’s ever a time when humans significantly prolong life or ameliorate many of the effects of ageing, no-one will talk that way again.
It’s just something we try to kid ourselves about now because it’s a signficant downer that we can do nothing about.
Nah. Unless we get actual immortality, people will still talk about how the relative shortness of life is ‘beautiful’ and the only reason we can appreciate life. And if we did, it would be the ‘fragility’ - the fact we could die in an accident, by being murdered, by disease - that would be romanticized.
Because, like you say, it’s taking something we can’t do anything about and putting a positive spin on it.
For me…it’s just the opposite. When the thought of mortality hits me, ‘what’s the point’ is far more likely to be the reaction than ‘I’d best appreciate this.’
Immortality doesn’t really appeal either, but no effort 6-pack abs and all the groupies a vampire could ever want (till I die 400 years in an explosion dust)… might sway me.
There would be downsides, of course, but even so this would be better future than the possible future where the only young women wanting to get me out of my pants are the nurses hired to change my diaper.
I have no interest in becoming ‘undead’. If I did, I certainly wouldn’t even consider it until I was terminally ill or dying of old age and for some reason, really really wanted to “live” even that sort of life as long as I continued to exist.
Hmm, immortality, but never see the sun? I can probably deal with no mirrors and no holy symbols, but never going outdoors during the day is a pretty steep price. Hard call.
I don’t see a downside of immortality per se, so long as you get to stay healthy and can get killed if you want to give up. How do you deal with your friends aging and dying? The same way my grandmother did, when she lived 20 years past her friends – you make new friends.
