So it goes.

Death is an inevitable part of life. Whether it comes today, tomorrow, or 60 years from now, we will all die one day. So it goes, Vonnegut would say. Vonnegut pushes the idea that life is about experience, not specific points in time. As a reader, you learn the beginning, end, and climax of the novel in the first chapter of Slaughterhouse Five, but that does not detract from the story whatsoever. You learn as a reader that life is not about death, but in fact about the experiences between the beginning and the end. As Billy Pilgrim travels through time, it becomes about the compilation of those times into a whole new level of time. A level of time not comprehendible to humans. But the Tralfamadorians are another story. These extraterrestrial creatures Vonnegut introduces act as a clever way to give commentary on humanity from an outside point of view. These creatures can see time as a whole. Something us mere humans could never even begin to imagine. We are creatures of free will, we are creatures of choices, we are not creatures chained by time. But the Tralfamadorians would be quick to correct me of that statement, in fact, they would say something like, "Time is set in stone. There is no such thing as free will, silly human."Therefore, there is no use fearing or trying to stop death. It is a natural occurrence with which we should not battle. Death happens, and we can't stop it. Death happens, so it goes.

We, as humans, have a paradoxical mindset. We value life to no end, saying things like "life is short". But then turn around and murder masses with an excuse called "war". We, as humans, have done terrible, irrevocable, grotesque things to our fellow human beings. But we (try to) practice kindness on a daily basis, and say things like, "do unto to others as to others do to you". I wish it was that simple. I wish humanity's kindness made up for its cruelties. But that is not the way it is. We continue to be hypocritical and passive. Perhaps, my use of the word "we" is a little too broad and pessimistic, but nonetheless I digress. Vonnegut makes a clear point of the irresponsibility and cruelty in the implications of war. He demonstrates the innocence of the soldiers being put into war with his character Billy Pilgrim, who waddles around in his silver (non-combat) boots. Mary O'Hare says that children are being put to war. It's true, we are killing are youth's carelessly. Vonnegut also impresses upon the reader that this detached killing affects these people for the rest of their lives. Billy lives with the image of a moon-like Dresden, after one of the worst bombings in world history, for the rest of his life. The barbershop quartet lips still haunt him, even in daily life. This killing, called "war", not only destroys human life, but even destroys animals. One of the most memorable moments in the book, at least for me , is when Billy cries for the first time in the war when he sees the cruelly treated horses carrying the carriage Billy is at peace within. We, as humans, inflict pain upon others to enjoy something for ourselves. War is the sad, dark side of humanity. Perhaps, war is just a part of life, so it goes.

Please let me make myself clear here. I'm not trying to say that all of humanity is inherently evil. I'm not trying to say that humanity is entirely doomed. I'm just saying that we have done terrible things. We will continue to do terrible things. But that does not mean everything is horrible. There are still smiling children, there are still weddings, there is still hope, there is still laughter, and there is still humanity. A binary of all opposites. We are the dark and light, we are death and life, and we are the beginning and the end. So it goes.

Contemplating Death and Religion

James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man delves into Stephen Dedalus' inner psyche on his journey of becoming an artist. Although there is no specific death is this novel, the ideas of life and death and religion are largely questioned by Stephen within the novel. According to the Catholic religion, there is a heaven and hell in the afterlife and your actions determine where you will end up when you die, or at least that is how Stephen sees it. Stephen deals with sin, guilt, redemption and questioning when it comes to his faith, but he also deals with the idea of mortality. This realization of mortality is seen throughout his development as a writer and as a young man. He struggles with being a man of the church and chasing his dreams of being a writer. Will choosing to be a writer mean he will go to hell once he dies?
Personally, I am still developing my religious ideals, but the idea of heaven and hell frustrates me to no end. I relate to Stephen with his struggles to be the best person he can be and fit into the church definition of being a "good" person. I also am an artist, although not a writer like Stephen (even if I write on occasion), and I feel that you have to take a step back from any religion to view the world artistically. Perhaps that's not true, but I feel that it helps me at least. Regardless, I think the fear of our human mortality and the question of our afterlives haunts us all at one point in time. We can hope for the best, but aren't we all a little scared of the possibility of going to hell? There are many religious and personal beliefs of what happens in the afterlife, not just heaven and hell. But Stephen directly faces this question of heaven and hell with his art and his curiosity. Just like Stephen, we may not directly find an answer, but will we learn how to live and how to deal with the idea of our human mortality and the possibility of an afterlife. After all, learning to how to truly live is more important than learning how to accept death.

Death of a Past Self, One Invisible to Others

Ellison's nameless narrator begins his story by claiming himself as invisible, hence the title, Invisible Man. Throughout the story, the reader learns what this invisibility truly means. It means the underdog, it means the oppressed, and it means the unrecognized heroes. In this specific situation, the narrator's oppression is derived from his skin color. Being a mulatto young man, he does everything he can to obey society's obligations but eventually learns to go against the tide. He finds that no matter whether he follows the crowd or goes against the grain the world keeps on being unjust despite his fervent efforts. The novel is a recollection of his journey from his hometown to his underground hole in Harlem, and many times along the way the reader witnesses the death and rebirth of the narrator's self.
As mentioned before, this metaphorical death of a self, is very pertinent throughout many pieces of literature and art. In fact, many cultures are filled with stories of becoming anew and the death of a past self. In some way this represents the synchedoche of the human psyche and within it human identity. We are never just one person, but many, all at once. Perhaps this type of metaphorical death implies a transcendence of some sort, or a reincarnation in some sense. A transcendence of the past and a reincarnation of what used to be. For in the novel, the narrator keeps on moving through his life and the past selves he once knew are invisible to the new people he meets. He knows of their existence, but those past selves are invisible to others.
Besides the significance of a metaphorical death of a past self, Invisible Man also displays death in a couple other lights. Ellison displays the despair death creates in one's life by Mr. Norton's story of the loss of his daughter. Death is a sad and uncontrollable happening in our mortal lives. And Mr. Norton's daughter's unexpected death demonstrates exactly that. Another example of death in Invisible Man would be martyrdom. When Brother Clifton is shot and killed by the police officer, his death seems to give motivation and passion to the narrator and the black community. Death reaches far beyond the actual event of death itself. Whether it be martyrdom, despair and tragedy, or a rebirth of oneself, death always plays a role of change in the lives of the living.