Citation

Killilea AG. Death Stud. 1986; 10(6): 479-490.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1986, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/07481188608252848

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

In exploring the link between the acceptance of mortality and the rejection of our present nuclear peril, this article focuses on Jonathan Schell's The Fate of the Earth. Schell's treatment of the danger of nuclear war sheds new light on individual death and the ability of people to reconcile themselves to their mortality. In turn, the capacity to be more urgently concerned about the death of all future generations than of oneself can lead to a "new politics" that eliminates nuclear weapons. While he does not fully articulate how much changed attitudes about death can change attitudes about politics, Schell succeeds in forcing attention to a central insight: the onset of nuclear weapons revolutionized not only our possibilities for destroying ourselves, but also our possibilities for saving ourselves. The key to all of the changes Schell seeks may well be the change in consciousness that results from confronting and accepting human mortality.

Language: en