Human Mortality

Man is the only species who understands that life is limited. Humans even created an entire field in which the limitations of human life are explored: philosophy. We spend a lot of time pondering death. It seems as if human mortality and being aware of it would push our reflection on our daily actions and decisions to a transcendental level.

In his short story, author Jorge Luis Borges tells the story of an “Immortal” about a man who lives forever. At one point in the story, this man collides with Homer, who is also immortal. After the meeting, he thinks, “I said goodbye to Homer at the doors of Tangier. However, I don’t think we said goodbye. ” Two immortal people don’t have to say “goodbye”. There is no “end” that would be an obstacle to that possibility.

People were thrown to the surface of the Earth

As we said earlier, every moment of life is unique because the path forward is the path to death. It is as if people have just been thrown into a world where our historical, social and family situation has already been created. Does that mean our lives are predetermined?

Martin Heidegger, the most important existentialist philosopher of the 20th century, believed that being aware of limited nature makes authentic thinking extremely desirable. Unauthentic thinking is unreflexive and does not help us live life to the fullest.

People’s unauthentic thinking

To get a better idea of ​​what unauthentic thinking is, imagine this general situation in your mind. You get in a taxi, the radio is on and the taxi driver starts telling you the news you hear on the radio. He shares his opinion on a topic that you could have deduced from the radio station he listened to.

Heidegger believed that repeating other people’s thoughts and opinions without considering them is unauthentic. The taxi driver (just one example) doesn’t think about what he’s saying. Instead, he just repeats other people’s opinions.

According to Heidegger, an unauthentic life is when you live your life in an outside world. So your life is reflective and you are not aware of its mortality. When people are aware of their mortality, they are interested in creating their own thoughts and making their own decisions.

Authentic thinking of people

Man does not come from anywhere, and does not return to anything. Your humanity (a future-oriented being) makes you think of more possibilities than realities. You are your chance and death is opportunity above all other possibilities. It doesn’t matter what you decide to do in your life. However, you will eventually die. Death is a companion of us all.

People who choose an authentic life choose it because people’s mortality and thinking about death cause them anxiety. How does it feel to think of nothing, the end of existence? They make their decisions aware that life is unique and whatever the moment may be their last moment. They know that no one can die for them and that death is just a moment that transcends everything else.