You Only Live Once, Bitchezz: The Popular Internalization of Epicurean Common-Sense Fears in Modern Youth Culture

      It seems that humans fear dying almost as innately as they desire to live. But is it fear of the unknown within the void of death, or the deprivation of organic life that has our race so thoroughly rattled?  And what proof do we have that either of these two states can be regarded as a harm to us? For all our abhorrence of death, is it really evil?

            The Epicurean view of death, juxtaposed with what Silverstein calls, the ‘Epicurean dilemma’, attempt to answer and organize these ancient questions. The Epicurean view of death is that death cannot possibly be an evil within itself. This view is directly motivated by the belief that annihilation of individual consciousness occurs upon each person’s death. Epicurean theorists hold that death itself is nothing, and once one dies they cease to exist. The theory follows that if there are no subjects in death, there cannot possibly be a subject for which death to exact harm upon, and is therefore not an evil. Logically, this idea should be calming. It makes sense that humans should receive this theory and be relieved of some of the anxiety they have in regard to their own demise. It is as if Epicureanism has provided an invisibility cloak to conceal us from all our imagined evils of death. So why aren’t the masses buying it?  The answer is common sense.

            The issue that arises between Epicurean views and human common sense is that humans have an innate intuition that death is the greatest evil that could possibly befall them. Joel Feinberg notes that, “there is noting a normal person…dreads more than his own death…”[1] Indeed, it is even common for those convicted of heinous crimes to prefer a lifetime of imprisonment to a humane execution. So what motivates this need to elude death at all costs, even if logically, annihilation cannot harm us? Silverstein would say it is the annihilation itself. “The common sense fear of death is the fear of permanent annihilation…”[2] This fear has not arisen from what the afterlife may hold, but from the fear that there isn’t one.

            This common-sense fear corresponds with Nagel’s deprivation point-of-view in regards to death. Nagel states death as an evil because it deprives us of the inherent ‘good’ that is life. “…if death is an evil, it is the loss of life, rather than the state of being dead, or nonexistent, or unconscious, that is objectionable.”[3]  If death is nothing, it cannot possibly exhibit any defining features (be they positive or negative). Therefore, the only negative we can perceive from death is the absence of life or consciousness that we value so highly.

            Certainly, these ideas give cause for understandable alarm, however Epicurus provides some relief.  “So death, the most frightening of bad things, is nothing to us; since when we exist, death is not yet present, and when death is present, we do not exist. Therefore, it is relevant neither to the living nor the dead, since it does not affect the former, and the latter do not exist.”[4] The father of Epicureanism assures the masses they have no need to fear their inevitable cessation of existence. He claims that one should not fear death because while one is alive, death is not acting upon you. Additionally, one should not fear death because once one has died they no longer exist to lament their loss of life. Therefore, there exists no time or place in which human existence and death coexist.

            Despite Epicurus’ consolations about death, modern implications exist to solidify popular belief in the common sense fear.  Many members of pop culture (rap music icons in particular) have recently become obsessed with the concept of ‘YOLO’[5] (you only live once).  This concept began as a colloquial phrase, but quickly developed into a widely accepted attitude, practiced in majority by the youth of America. YOLO has since matured into a common justification for exhibiting reckless, unwise, or unkind behavior. Originating with rap stars who value drinking high quality tequila, watching beautiful women remove their clothing, and recreationally ingesting large quantities of drugs, as the praemia vitae of life, YOLO has made a huge impact on youth culture. Take for example, this excerpt from my little brother’s Facebook ‘wall’, “Rum drinking competition tonight (Tuesday) by the Hersy station train tracks #YOLO BITCHEZ”.  In this statement, my little brother (15) is exhibiting his belief that he is justified in engaging in reckless intoxication (in a dangerous location) because this lifetime is his only chance to do so.  Certainly, this interpretation reveals that the hidden, yet central, meaning of YOLO is not “you only live once” but instead, “you will only exist in this physical lifetime”.  This suggests that YOLO has arisen from the common sense fear that death is a harm because it is the end of individual existence, and has been spawned by the desire to fulfill as many praemia vitae as possible before that annihilation occurs.

Williams supports this desire to accomplish the ‘delights of life’ in his statement, “…if the praemia vitae and consciousness of them are good things, then…more praemia is better than…fewer praemia.”[6]  Surely Lil’ Wayne would agree.  So if we were to exist on the physical plane eternally, and constantly experience more praemia, would our lives continue to improve exponentially? Williams would answer ‘No’.  When Williams states, “Immortality, or a state without death, would be meaningless”[7], he suggests that the eternally looming possibility of death is specifically what makes the praemia so valuable. The cessation of life thereby directly impacts the meaningfulness of it.

Those who ascribe to the YOLO attitude are no doubt concerned with accomplishing their desires, however they generally do so without regard to any form of ethic. These individuals are not concerned with the morality of their actions, or with the possible afterlife repercussions of such, but only with their hedonistic desires to make merry (by all modern means imaginable). This contributes to the theory that modern American youth culture has developed a common sense fear of death because it implies they do not believe in an afterlife.

            Interestingly, rap music icons also endorse the motto, “Live fast, die young”[8] which contrasts with their speculated common sense fear. Perhaps the more genuine fear within these attitudes is the fear of an uneventful, or unenjoyable life.