If you could know when/how you'd DIE...

[Komori]

So, if there was a way, right now, to find out when and how you are going to die, would you want to know? And, for argument's sake, it is completely impossible to change this precise event. Your death is a fixed point in time (in Doctor Who talk).



Me? I probably wouldn't want to know. On the other hand, it would be interesting to know the how. Like, if I knew I was going to be hit by a bus, then I could raise poisonous snakes as pets and go skydiving and all sorts of dangerous things. XD

[Deleted]

I'm not scared of death itself or what'll happen after, but I am scared of what'll happen to me in this life. Things like pain. I worry about enough things as it already is, and if I knew what would happen, that's what would dominate my life. It might make me do more things, but it won't make me happier or set my mind at east, and it might even serve to send me back down Suicide Lane, which is a place I never want to return to. I dislike surprises I know are coming, but It's better than knowing and having no hope.

[Tam]

Neither. No way. Definitely not. xD To me, life is more than a countdown to my last moment on earth, and knowing anything about that moment would turn it into one.

[Sock]

Honestly, I think knowing when/how I'll die would just increase my anxiety. If I knew how, I'd probably become depressed if it wasn't a peaceful way that I wanted. If I knew when, I'd be constantly worried and counting down to that date.

On the other hand, it might make me more motivated, but I think it'd cause more grief than anything. So nah, I wouldn't wanna know either.

[Celestial]

I'm probably going to be the only one who would like to know. If this was my last day on earth, I would try and spend it in the best way possible and that would be impossible to do if I did not know how I died. Plus I'd be able to get my affairs in order before dying and not be unprepared for when it happens.

It would be motivation to live life to the fullest since I'll know I'm not immortal and will be encouraged to do things today instead of 'some day'. I don't like surprises either, especially not such fatal ones. And on top of that, if I'm ever stuck in a bad situation then I won't be worried because my death is elsewhere and its a fixed point.

[Kozma]

While I'm not afraid of death itself, I am quite afraid of dying a painful death (drowning, impalement, fire, etc.), so I'd rather not have such information revealed to me. If I were to find out that my death was guaranteed to be a painful one, the knowledge would dominate my thoughts and quite possibly ruin my life, as I would not be able to enjoy it.

Chances are my death is not going to be painless; but I'd rather not know about the time or method of my death because I don't want to have my mind fixated on my mortality. I want to enjoy life.

[Sen]

This is really tough to think about. In theory, I'd want to know so I could manage to teach myself to appreciate life and all it involves. On the other hand, knowing would make me upset. I want to remain under the assumption that I still have forever on this earth to spend with my loved ones, not constantly be haunted by the fact that it'll be over right then. That would also be hard knowledge for family. Like a family member dying of cancer, they'll know there is constantly a clock over their heads counting down the time they have left together. I just don't know if it's something that can be overcome. Fear and avoidance of death is a natural, powerful thing.

[insanepurpleone]

On the one hand, it would be interesting, but I think it would drive me crazy knowing. If I knew the when, I would be totally fixated on that, and if I knew the how I'd probably go nuts trying to avoid whatever it is. That it'll happen someday, somehow, is plenty of information for me.

[Jo]

I'm with Celestial- I'd like to know. That way, if it was soon, I could live my life for the now, without worrying about the future (goodbye exams and revision! XD) And if it wasn't until I was an old lady, then I wouldn't have to worry about death ^^ And if it was in the middle... hmm, I suppose in some ways it'd be hard, but I'd know better how to make decisions like when to get married, when to have kids etc.

I wouldn't like to know how though particularly :/ I think it'd make me too scared. Like, if I found out I'd die from being murdered, I'd become too wary of people to trust them.

[Strife]

If the legends of old have taught us anything, it's that if your ultimate fate is revealed to you in detail and you go out of your way to prevent it from happening, your very efforts will cause it to ironically come true. For that reason, I definitely would not want to know how or when I die, because I'll either attempt to stop it from happening and accidentally do something that causes it, or I'll ignore it and it'll eat away at the back of my mind for decades, and even if it didn't happen I still would have spent all of those years worrying my pants off.

To be honest, I don't see anything I could possibly gain from such knowledge. xD;

[Cow-winkle]

Has someone been reading Machine of Death?

I'd like to know, for a variety of practical reasons:

As my answer suggested, I'm the kind of person who likes to plan ahead, but a lot of times it's difficult to tell how far ahead I'll have to plan. Knowing when I'm going to die will give me some finite number I can work with, rather than living in uncertainty.

Yeah, I suppose it might be upsetting to deal with my own mortality, but I'd rather get all my frustration out at once than spread my anxiety and uncertainty over the course of a lifetime, which is what I think a lot of people do. Knowing how and when I'm going to die would allow me to take more interesting risks than I would otherwise--after all, if I'm going to die in a car accident in forty years, learning to skydive today probably won't do me much harm. I suppose there's always the possibility of getting a permanent non-fatal injury, but I could weigh that possibility against the time I have left and the way I'll die.

A lot of people say they want their death to be a surprise for them. Maybe I wouldn't mind it being a surprise for myself, but I don't know if I'd want it to be a surprise for my loved ones, given the option. Knowing what's going to happen and when ahead of time, even knowing that it's unchangeable, might soften the blow a little bit.

I guess if there were a way to predict with complete accuracy how I'd die, it would indicate that my entire life was determined in some way--including the fact that I'd know how I was going to die--but I don't have that much of a problem with that. What it really comes down to is that, given the choice between knowing the truth and remaining ignorant, I'd rather choose the truth.

[Deleted]

I really would not want to. At all. I don't like to think about dying, it's too sad and I'm in high school. Since I don't engage in any reckless behaviors and I'm quite sure no one has a horrible grudge against me, I don't think I'll be dying for a long, long time. And I want to basically push such thoughts out of my mind. I want to live for the sake of life - of both myself and the people I love and the children I eventually hope to have.

[selmette]

there were a few years of my life where the thought of death--where just the thought of being old and near death--would keep me up for days on end crying and worrying and going insane.

even with all my near-death experiences, i've been over it for a while, but i never want to experience anything like that again, not until i need to think about it, which (hopefully, and probably) is not going to be for a long time.

i most certainly do not need another deadline(ha ha punny) right now. i would be pressured to sort every problem i have and get as much done as possible before my death(which if it was unnatural and soon would be bad but i guess i'd be fine with it if i just died of/at an old age).

right now i would like to plan my future and work on all my long-term goals and life dreams and aspirations without having to worry about fitting them in before a certain time. i don't even want to know how i'll die without the when, because then i'll be paranoid every time something relating to the how comes in contact with me.

ignorance is bliss. that has always applied to me and always will.

and anyway, every one of us is going to die wanting more. wishing that you could have just done that one last thing or said one last thing to that person. there's always going to be another thing that could have been done, you can't possibly fit all of them in before your death.

[Stephanie (swordlilly)]

This actually reminds me of a British short film that I watched in a creative writing class: Ready (2002), starring Imelda Staunton. It's about a woman whose family members all died in some way or other exactly on their 57th birthday. She was haunted by this knowledge throughout her life. She decided never to marry, never to have kids etc., and she spent all the years leading up to her 57th birthday preparing to meet her death.

SPOILER: Click to show

Unlike her family members who were in denial about the curse, she accepted that she was going to die on her 57th birthday. She gave away her life savings, checked into a fancy hotel, had an awesome last day and lay down on the bed to die. But she woke up the next morning and found that she was still alive. Somehow she had broken the family curse.

Then she realized that she had already lost half of her life to the curse. So the film ends with her throwing out her family photos, throwing out her past worries, and settling down to really enjoy life, no longer worrying about when her death was going to come.

So I'm with the people who say "No." I wouldn't want to know. Knowing would just haunt me and depress me, regardless of how hard I tried to enjoy the time I have left on Earth.

[M is for Morphine]

If I knew I could know, then I'd have to find out even if I knew I'd be disappointed. Otherwise the curiosity would drive me nuts.

I can see the benefit: If you know the date, you know that nothing can kill you beforehand. I think I'd feel empowered to try out some dangerous things, like eating fugu or hang gliding. Also, if I'm going to be hit by a bus in two years I want to know so I can run through my savings. What good is dying with money in the bank? XD Or I'd know in advance to get a will made up.

Yeah, I'd probably worry a bit. I mean, I worry already.