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Sesame Street took a similar tack when Mr. Hooper died [1]. I was a rather literal child and was often frustrated by adults' use of such euphemisms for death (
by alexjplant 5y ago
Sesame Street took a similar tack when Mr. Hooper died [1].
I was a rather literal child and was often frustrated by adults' use of such euphemisms for death ("in a better place", "passed on", "asleep forever", etc.) as I considered it deceitful and patronizing. It's nice to know that there are children's shows that deal with such an uncomfortable fact of existence with plain language and dignity.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NjFbz6vGU8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NjFbz6vGU8
- edoceo 5y agoGotta NSFW tag this or something. Hit with these first grade memories.
- asxd 5y agoThose lines > "Big bird, it has to be this way--because." >> "Because?" > "Just... because" Goodness those hit me hard.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- p1mrx 5y agoBecause natural selection doesn't optimize for longevity.
- asxd 5y agoWhat you're saying is true, and it can be helpful to put things into logical terms like that. But it's a messed up thing when you're a kid. You're thrust into the world, and some people around you make everything alright. Then one of those people leave, forever. As I'm sure many others can attest to, even as an adult, that frustration doesn't go away. I accept that it can be explained as deterioration of the cells, or maybe general entropy, but there's an emotional aspect to it nevertheless. Somehow, it's comforting for me to remember that it happens "just because."
- hoseja 5y agoHumans are extraordinarily longevous. Natural selection doesn't optimize for immortality.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y agoThere are biologically immortal animals on earth, so it doesn't exactly optimize against it either.
- blowski 5y agoWhich begs the questions "why not?" and "why does natural selection get to say how long we live?".
- andai 5y agoMy mother likes to tell the story of the first time I encountered a dead mouse: "Why isn't he moving?" --"Well, he's in the sky." (One way we say "in heaven" in my native language.) "But he's right there." --"Well, his soul is in the sky." "..." --"..." "And why isn't his tail in the sky?"
- Dumblydorr 5y agoPardon my pushback, but wouldn't it be easier to just answer: the mouse has died. I know that's not religious and everyone has their own views on the soul, but: do we need to ease feelings about a dead mouse? I see the death of wild animals as good opportunities to teach children, so they're more prepared for the death of humans they know or their pets.
- ketzo 5y agoI think that's the point that GP is making -- they were contrasting a straightforward approach to their mother's more euphemistic explanation, which was unsatisfying to them as a child.
- in_cahoots 5y agoLike almost everything in parenting, it’s more complicated than you would first think. My toddler knows our elderly dog went to the doctor and died because she was sick. But when he asks ‘why’ I have to clarify that: she was sick but not the same way he gets a cold; that the doctor tries to make people feel better too; that she’s not dead in the way replaceable batteries die; and that her grandparents won’t die when they get a cold even though they also get sick. I avoided the rookie mistake of telling him that the dog went ‘to sleep’ (because then he might worry that he’ll die if he goes to sleep too). But there were a dozen other considerations that I also had to make, up to the point of changing our wording when batteries or electronics ‘die’ from now on.
- Doxin 5y agoDo dogs not die in the way batteries do though? Surely we love dogs more than batteries, but both have a finite lifespan.