Death
by Shelly Kagan · first published 2012
6mentions
3recommended by
5HN commenters
2013–2023first – last mentioned
60% recommend40% neutral
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Shelly Kagan wrote a great introduction to the philosophy of death [1]. It directly addresses many of the OP's arguments, and, it persuaded me that it's not a black and white issue (ie. immortality = ultimate good) [1] https://www.amazon.com/Death-Open-Courses-Shelly-Kagan/dp/03...
on “Immortality vs. Society (2016)” ↗I really enjoyed the Yale open courses. Less technical, but enjoyable nonetheless. My personal favourite is the on Death by Professor Kagan. He runs through all the philosophical theories of death, going through their strong and weak points. https://oyc.yale.edu/death/phil-176 The psychology 101 is good as well.
on “MIT OpenCourseWare’s top lectures of all time” ↗Death With Shelly Kagan (Philosophy 176, Yale) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2J7wSuFRl8&list=PLEA18FAF1A... I don't know why, I've listened it through more than once and enjoyed it a lot.
on “Ask HN: What's the best lecture series you've ever seen?” ↗The one I've enjoyed watching more than once: Death with Shelly Kagan, Yale https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2J7wSuFRl8&list=PLEA18FAF1A...
on “Ask HN: What are some of the best university courses available online for free?” ↗…on that a little while ago by Shelly Kagan (decent excerpt at [1]). I think the evolutionary perspective is clearly "correct," but it doesn't quite answer the big questions for me. It establishes that "death is bad" is an axiom of our ethical system (and not a theorem of it,) but it has nothing to say when we ask whether we should attempt to adjust our morality. 1: http://chronicle.com/article/Is-Death-Bad-for-You-/131818/
on “Google announces Calico, a new company that will focus on health and well-being” ↗https://oyc.yale.edu/death/phil-176 This course on Open Yale called "Death". Shelly Kagan talks about whether the soul exists, what death means for the individual, why/whether death is bad, and finally the issue of suicide.
on “Ask HN: What's the best lecture series you've ever seen?” ↗