The meaning of life given by death and the metaphysics of time : What immortality in Cotard Syndrome reveals

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  • 死が照らし出す生の意義と時間の形而上学 : 不死を妄想主題とするコタール症候群が示すもの

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How often have we heard the claim that "life is important simply because there is death?" The existence of death, as the final destination in life, forces us to realize the true importance of daily existence. Whether the meaning of death extends beyond the psychological realm and into the ontological is the purview of the "time theory" of analytic philosophy. This paper focuses on Cotard Syndrome, which creates the delusion in patients that they are immortal. The perception of immortality, as a result of this syndrome, frequently induces a deep despair for those affected, as they are deprived of the value of all existence, rather than sustained by the vitality of life and future hopes. Consequently, the reason for such despair in patients with Cotard Syndrome was analyzed from the viewpoint of the modern philosophy of time. It is argued, firstly, that the outline of the future (which should be seen from the viewpoint of death) does not reveal itself because the viewpoint of death is deficient under the immortality delusion of Cotard Syndrome. Secondly, the maturation of this framework, in order to recognize the true value of life, will forever be prevented. Cotard Syndrome paradoxically suggests that the existence of death gives the present life meaning, by connecting it to the ontological significance of the future.

Journal

  • Bioethics

    Bioethics 24 (1), 186-196, 2014

    Japan Association for Bioethics

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