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"To desire immortality is to desire the eternal perpetuation of a great mistake."

I really like that quote!:smile: It's from Arthur Schopenhauer.
What do you guys think about it? Let's discuss.

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Reply 1
The main enquiry about the quote could be what made him (or would make anyone else) think that life was a great mistake?
And why would he think that this should necessarily apply to everyone?

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines a mistake as 'An action or judgment that is misguided or wrong'.
If Schopenhauer is correct and if God also exists then God has made a bad call by creating life - or at least 'life as we know it' (i.e. immortality might be OK if we were in the Garden of Eden instead). In which case it doesn't matter whether God is omnipotent and omniscient or not- God would have knowingly made a bad decision, at least from our perspective or some of our perspectives.

If Schopenahuer is correct and God does not exist then nature itself is malignant, either in its origin or its consequences ('life as we know it'). There is evidence from all perspectives to support that nature is either malignant in its source or in its consequences. 'Survival of the fittest' does not necessarily mean 'Survival of the most benevolently wise'. It means survival of those who have adapted to their situation, no matter whether that situation agrees with them or not. Survival of the resourceful in some cases but survival of the deceitful or those who merely keep out of harms's way even if that is a more selfish thing to do. The person who sacrifices their life to save another person has been a victim of nature because it has cost them their life and the world has also lost a benevolent person.

I agree with Schopenhauer. On the whole, life is a great mistake. How can it be, for instance, that Shakespeare lies dead whilst those who have not an iota of his insight are alive , indeed are profitting from him? He was not a mythical, magical person from history. He was a person with feelings. Would not his immortality, or the immortality of say, a great architect, have been a great thing? But no- nature decides that a new generation must be born to be or not to be educated in a way that might be fulfilling or that might be even half as good as those experienced by some people centuries ago.

If there is a God He works in utterly messed up ways. But so do his people. So maybe if people change their ways and be far more good to each other and intelligent about each others needs, desires and abilities, nature itself will follow and we might even have a life worth having immortality in rather than one where immortality only seems desirable if you actually live in one of the more desirable places and have something worth saying or contributing for eternity.
Original post by Jenfrench
I really like that quote!:smile: It's from Arthur Schopenhauer.
What do you guys think about it? Let's discuss.


What does it mean? x
Original post by prettytoes:)
What does it mean? x


Nothing for you to worry your pretty little toes about
Reply 4
The basic desire for immortality is a normal part of being alive. We all have a natural urge to survive.

But most importantly, I would completely disagree with the quote. My becoming immortal we would not be perpetuating any kind of mistake. If the mistake is referring to humanity, we are no mistake. As it would imply some kind of intention behind our emergence. A mistake is subjective, and I like humanity.

Immortality perpetuates nothing by the life of the being itself.
It's alright :wink:
We are the only species that is aware of its own mortality and thus come up with an array of illusions to ease the anxiety from being in such a condition. For example, religion is one of those illusions people cling to ease their anxiety, like people who believe they will go to heaven or be reincarnated as away to not have to deal with death.

There are other illusions such as deifying your loved one and this is reinforced by popular music or films which encourage people to turn their partners into gods and someone the worship and find comfort in but of course this can never last. Or the need for people to have a legacy or something that lives on beyond them in the form of a statue or published work as a way to symbolise their immortality but as with the others these are all illusions.
Reply 7
Schopenhauer should cheer the **** up
Reply 8
Original post by evolutionaryme
Nothing for you to worry your pretty little toes about



Thank you for making me laugh, it was my first laugh of the day :biggrin:
Reply 9
I quite like that quote even though I've never heard of it. It reminded me of Oscar Wilde's Dorian Gray.
I think the sad thing with immortality is that you may keep on living but the ones around you grow older and die. Furthermore, time is out of your hands, by which i mean is that you cannot go back to the past to correct your mistake but you're forced to live with it.

Thank G for being mortal!!
:biggrin:
Surely if one desires immortality, he/she doesn't believe life is a mistake. I have to disagree with this quote
Reply 11
Original post by Jenfrench
I really like that quote!:smile: It's from Arthur Schopenhauer.
What do you guys think about it? Let's discuss.


Well how can we appreciate life without death? It's a bit like how can we enjoy the sunshine when we haven't had the rain or how can there be good without evil, a life without death is stupid and that's even if you believe in the absolute idea of death.
Reply 12
Original post by joeh342
Well how can we appreciate life without death? It's a bit like how can we enjoy the sunshine when we haven't had the rain or how can there be good without evil, a life without death is stupid and that's even if you believe in the absolute idea of death.


This is a false comparison because we cannot experience death, and therefore cannot make such a comparison; we can only appreciate when we are alive, and therefore any appreciation to be made will only be done so before death, no matter how long we happen to live for.
Reply 13
To desire immortality is to desire the eternal perpetuation of a great mistake."


I believe that by this he meant that death is a natural occurance and immortality supercedes death which would be a mistake. To which I could agree to as death is a law which all those bound to it must obey, to be immortal is to be something that was never meant to be.

Alternativly, you could say death is our greatest challange and therefore to conquer death and become immortal would be the completion of our greatest challenge of any living being which is to survive. To this extent he would be incorrect.
Original post by W-Three
The basic desire for immortality is a normal part of being alive. We all have a natural urge to survive.



I do not agree that the instinct not to die is the same as a desire for immortality
Reply 15
Original post by gorve
I believe that by this he meant that death is a natural occurance and immortality supercedes death which would be a mistake. To which I could agree to as death is a law which all those bound to it must obey, to be immortal is to be something that was never meant to be.


Hi, welcome to TSR.

Death was equally not 'meant' to be, unless one believes we were created intentionally by an objective consciousness who decided to create death on purpose in order to prevent us being immortal. The idea that something is natural therefore that's what's 'meant' to be is weakly supported in my opinion.
Reply 16
Thanks miser.
While the idea that death was not "meant to be" could be true however I believe you could equally say that it would not take an "objective consciousness" to create death because death is a concept we created, as far as I can tell death is simply the name we call something that has ended. Or exists no more.
Also I agree with you when you say its weakly argued to say that something natural is right but I believe that you can say that something natural is "meant to be" more than something artificial unless you say that this same objective conciousness created us so that we could make the things which created the disired end product which would be immortality.

(if that makes sence)
Reply 17
just because Schopenhauer was a mistake doesnt mean he has to call other people mistakes...
Sounds a bit harsh :tongue:

I get what he means though. Or at least, I feel like I do. It's a great quote with a million possible conclusions to draw. Existentialism ftw!
I completely disagree with the quote.

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