Is death the only thing guaranteed in our lives?

Use this forum to discuss the July 2021 Book of the month, " Worldlines: A Many Worlds Novel" (Many Worlds, #1)" by Adam Guest
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Sushan Ekanayake
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Is death the only thing guaranteed in our lives?

Post by Sushan Ekanayake »

Death, the only thing in life that is guaranteed. That’s what people say and that’s what we all think. However, what if it isn’t?
(Location 26 of Kindle version)

The author gets a start to his story with the above statement. He says that 'people say so'. Do actually people say like that? Do you too think like that? What is the actual relevance of this statement to this story?

This is about the book, not the subject in general, so you MUST answer the second question as well. (the mod)
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Nathaniel Owolabi
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Post by Nathaniel Owolabi »

Well, I do not think people say that, since this is the first time I have read this. To answer your second question, I do agree that death is guaranteed in life but I do not think it is the only thing guaranteed, I think life is also guaranteed for before you die you have to live. I do think it is rather relevant to prove his point,
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Post by Amanda Dobson »

I don’t think people actually say things like that. But is something that is true. I don’t personally think along those lines if we are here and then die, but prefer to think that I am living my life’s journey wherever that may be. I think it is relevant because of the way the characters lives were and it added depth to the overall story.
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Post by 63tty »

I don't think this was relevant to the author's story. But it is a quote that is factual, in that we all die in the end. I don't think like that and I also don't believe people think like that.
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Post by DyanaFl »

Yes, people do say that. How many of them believe that to be a driving principle, I do not know. While it's factually true, I wouldn't say it applies to 'LIFE' as humans. Different things are guaranteed to individuals, and using that statement with a negative approach just dampens everything.
As far as the relevance of this statement to this story is concerned, it is relevant in accidents or premature deaths. So it was relevant to a large extent in this story. However, in the end, life will be extinguished some time or another, whether it is merely due to aging or disease (not trying to be a downer). So life for infinity does not seem real.
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Post by Mtibza eM »

That statement was not relevant to the entire story but I agree with it. When you are alive, you have a freewill, you can do anything and control almost every thing about your life, but death you can't. It is guaranteed and no matter how cautious we can get, we can't run away from it.
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Post by jomana_3 »

I didn't really understand what the author meant by this statement, but death is guaranteed. I don't think that it's the only guaranteed thing, though.
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Post by scaryeyes_25 »

I agree that death is the only thing that is guaranteed. It is the only thing we cannot escape. But for me what is more important is how you view life before you meet that guarantee. How you can make a difference. Knowing that death is a guarantee can lead you in two directions, make the most out of it and enjoy life to the fullest. Or just go with the flow and endure life. For me, I always choose the first. It is relevant as a whole because it talks about life and how the different Garry's perceived life.
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Post by Neenu B_S »

The plot of the story doesn't seem to agree with it but I do. Life is so unpredictable and the only guaranteed thing would be death which we come to all of us some day. The author says 'people say so' and so I guess the author is right.
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Post by maggi3 »

I have heard people say this. Oftentimes it is used to mean "don't take anything for granted" because death is the only thing you are guaranteed in life. I think it's true to some extent; there should be certain things/people you can rely on in life, but you should be grateful for those things/people and not take them for granted. I think the statement just serves as an interesting introduction to the story, setting up the sentence: "My name is Gary Jackson, and I, like you, will probably live forever."
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Post by MarcellaM »

I think the author doesn't agree with the fact that death is something that is guaranteed. From my understanding, the author explains that one doesn't die from his perspective but the other people's perspective. This explains that death is not the only thing that is guaranteed but also life in another worldline.
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Post by Victor Kilyungi »

I don't think people say that. What I've heard a lot is that we'll all die one day, so why not live your life today. With regards to real life, I think it is guaranteed though what comes after, not so much. I think it's relevance is that people are freed from the infinite number of things that could happen because of them or that they could do.
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Post by Sara chhawniwala »

I have heard many people say this. I think so too. Death and life are the only things that can be guaranteed. Everything else can change. Fate, destiny all is in our hand.
To answer your last question, i donot think this has any relevance to the story in the book.
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Post by ROSEY-ANN »

Sushan wrote: 01 Jul 2021, 00:17
Death, the only thing in life that is guaranteed. That’s what people say and that’s what we all think. However, what if it isn’t?
(Location 26 of Kindle version)

The author gets a start to his story with the above statement. He says that 'people say so'. Do actually people say like that? Do you too think like that? What is the actual relevance of this statement to this story?
I think the statement about death is relevant to the whole many-world theory. Remember Gary met in an accident where he could have died. However, he managed to survive, and then lucid dreams impacting the other worldlines where he is alive.
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Post by t_mann23 »

I don't think people say it exactly like that, but people definitely do talk about death being inevitable. I agree, someday we'll all die. That's what makes life so precious because we want to do things and live up until that point. As for the relevance to the story, it's definitely evident, as the root of the story involves Gary committing murder within a dream and the accident where he almost died. But the multiverse theory questions whether death is really certain, so the statement is a good setup for what will soon be explored.
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