If human beings were to be unbound by their inevitable end, would humanity seize to consider key moral principles in everyday life? Assuming that immortality would be humanity's future, and a forever life is now in the palm of our hands, our perception of life and its sanctity of it, might not be as quintessential as our basic, ethical principles might suggest. If humans were immortal, would we seize to seek moral justifications in our interactions with ourselves and others? Would we live a solitary and selfish, unempathetic existence? Although these questions presume that the finite time each person has on this Earth makes them more inclined to follow moral principles in order to protect it, it's interesting to examine just how much the development of an ethical code is centered around our inevitable end and our interaction with others.
If there is one thing that is certain in life, it is that we will all meet death. Even with advanced biomedical advancements, the most influential, wealthy people couldn’t save themselves from this fate. Our reality as human beings creates a dilemma of time- a dilemma of lacking it. Because of this finitude, we try to advance our lives and our legacies in various ways. Whether it’s through creation, philanthropy, or selfless acts, we participate in defining our mortality with morality. Some may argue we do so because of the principles regarding egoism, (but let set that aside for another blog post). Some argue, through helping others, we expand the reach of our independent lives to something larger. We create a positive impact on lives that span and define generations. Through this, our legacy as an independent individual becomes something much grander.
I know what you're thinking..." well, Julia, what if I'm not into helping others or being around people, as a matter of fact". Ok ok ok ok...those were my thought initially as well. Let's be real, there's something so corny and faux about the adage I'm discussing here. It's sort of a take on "through helping others we help ourselves". We LOVE an adage, huh? Well, let's be completely clear, no one lives alone. Literally no one. Even the most isolative actions require some form of human interaction.
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