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DevinB333 t1_j6jxts3 wrote

I hope I never attain the kind of fame that makes people seek out any and all correspondence I’ve had with anyone after my death.

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trowwaith t1_j6k7bhb wrote

Yes but it might be interesting if you were able to correspond after your death.

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nom-nom-nom-de-plumb t1_j6lqtok wrote

I died 37 years ago, during the Regan administration, due to a mishap involving cocaine, a bowling pin, a bowl of sukiyaki and one of those little paddle boats that's shaped like a swan. One moment I was on top of the 80's, and the next I was unable to do any more drugs and could only communicate thru my Cellular Phone. Now, thanks to advances in technology, it's much easier for me to interact with the living. So, long story short, do more blow because when you die...you end up a ghost on reddit.

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nilyro t1_j6mg1ee wrote

What the fuck did I just read :)

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mikarala t1_j6nd4tu wrote

Why does this sound like a really fun opening paragraph to a book, though.

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NoRightsProductions t1_j6lnsma wrote

Mark Twain wanted his autobiography published 100 years after his death, which is pretty close

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HearseWithNoName t1_j6lr9o8 wrote

Pretty close 13 years ago?

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NoRightsProductions t1_j6lshzv wrote

Pretty close to the idea of corresponding after death.

Of course, 13 years ago is also considerably closer than when it was written, so, yes?

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DevinB333 t1_j6k9l4g wrote

It would be. I’ll let you know if it works out.

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trowwaith t1_j6lmi4r wrote

I’ll be too old to wait; just send the letters direct to Princeton. Best wishes.

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Polaric_Spiral t1_j6m2m6q wrote

Hey, if someone's offed you in the last several hours you've already done it!

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TD87 t1_j6lv6z4 wrote

"May we all rest in peace." I've never read that sentence before.

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AnotherLightInTheSky t1_j6mzb8f wrote

RIP humanity?

It's my default reaction to even municipal level news lol

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TD87 t1_j6n0wsq wrote

Lol yeah... I'll read a random article like "Australia commissions 400 new coal plants" and I be like we really gon die smh... But yeah this one hit different coz he wrote it for posterity, knowing that by the time we all read it, he'd be long dead and shit. I guess it made me think about my mortality, but also the context of it all makes it sad... and then there's the matter of it being funny thing to say earnestly.

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Own-Storage3301 t1_j6l4g8m wrote

Hiding Houdini tried that but no luck

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DrDildoMD t1_j6lm0wi wrote

> Hiding Houdini tried that but no luck

Well there’s your problem! He’s just hiding!

I’m sure just as soon as he’s dead he will contact us. Any minute now.

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jleonardbc t1_j6k3wh1 wrote

This is more specifically the intrigue-ridden correspondence Eliot had with his longtime muse and mistress, one of the most significant people in his life.

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DevinB333 t1_j6kaolk wrote

I understand this context. And it seems they made arrangements for their release. My statement still stands though. I wouldn’t want this type of stuff released after my death.

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gloryday23 t1_j6kido8 wrote

>I wouldn’t want this type of stuff released after my death.

I'm fairly certain, once you're dead, you won't care.

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necro_kederekt t1_j6ljise wrote

It’s an interesting philosophical question. Should the wishes of dead people be respected?

Let’s say a dying person says “please, my last wish is for all my organs to stay in my body and be buried with me. It’s very important and I won’t get into heaven otherwise.” You say “okay buddy.”

They bleed out. There are five people in the hospital whose lives can be saved by this guy’s organs. Do you let them die according to his wishes? Or do you figure he has no wishes now that he’s dead, so scavenge those organs.

And what if the stakes aren’t so high? What if somebody says “my last wish is for you to keep my flower garden presentable.” Do you have any obligation to do so after they die?

Would you be okay with me fucking your grimacing corpse on live television? Current-you may say no, but by your logic, it doesn’t matter what alive-you wants.

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gloryday23 t1_j6locle wrote

>Let’s say a dying person says “please, my last wish is for all my organs to stay in my body and be buried with me. It’s very important and I won’t get into heaven otherwise.” You say “okay buddy.”

Personally, I am 100% in favor of organ donation being neither opt-in, or opt-out, I think it should be mandatory, and there should be no exemptions.

>They bleed out. There are five people in the hospital whose lives can be saved by this guy’s organs. Do you let them die according to his wishes? Or do you figure he has no wishes now that he’s dead, so scavenge those organs.

It is insane to me that people anywhere die, because someone needs to be sure all of the organs decompose into dirt with their corpse.

>And what if the stakes aren’t so high? What if somebody says “my last wish is for you to keep my flower garden presentable.” Do you have any obligation to do so after they die?

To me this is the philosophical question, no on is hurt by the action or inaction, is your commitment to the person valid after their death, I have no idea.

>Would you be okay with me fucking your grimacing corpse on live television? Current-you may say no, but by your logic, it doesn’t matter what alive-you wants.

My friend, if you can get it (my corpse) once I'm dead, and they've taken anything usable from it for organ donation, feel free to go to town, afterlife, or no, I'll be done with it.

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necro_kederekt t1_j6lp5l5 wrote

I like your perspective! It seems internally consistent. That’s rare these days.

Do you think there should be exemptions for religious beliefs if, as in my original question, some people truly believe that they need all their pieces together? This isn’t a gotcha, I personally think religion is dumb, if you answered no, I would agree.

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gloryday23 t1_j6mzj1r wrote

I'm borderline anti-religious, so no I don't think religious or really any other exemptions shoudl be allowed once you're dead. That being said, if the world insists on it, anyone exempt from donating should be exempt from receiving them as well.

None of this matters because of how far we are from anything like this being a reality, we'll be making organs before anyone considers mandatory donation. What I don't get is why/how a person can be an organ donor, and their family can refuse on their behalf once their dead. That is just crazy to me. If we do have post mortem rights, one would think the decision we made while alive would trump decisions someone else makes for us once we're dead.

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Frank_Bigelow t1_j6mdql3 wrote

You've responded more or less exactly the way I meant to. All I'd like to add is that, in the case of the flower garden, there is no obligation created by the fact that the request doesn't hurt anyone. You may wish to care for the flower garden, whether it's because of a choice to honor the dead person's wish, or just because you like flower gardens, but the fundamental question doesn't change just because the request harms no one. A dead person's wishes carry no obligation for the living beyond those the living choose themselves.

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turkeygiant t1_j6lplzv wrote

This ties into something that a lot of people don't actually realize, a personal will is a incredibly weak legal document in many jurisdictions that only carries weight until somebody contests it. Lets say you are a perfectly mentally competent person but decide to leave your entire multi-million dollar fortune in a trust to take care of your poodle should you pass away because you don't particularly like your family. Your family can absolutely contest that decision, they don't even have to prove you were incompetent in any way, they can just say "its dumb to use all this money to care for a poodle, we are their kids, we want the money" and if a judge finds this to be a reasonable assertion they can just override your wishes. Any respect given to your wishes after you die are either due to the niceties of your family and friends respecting those wishes, or a judge deciding they are reasonable to follow.

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necro_kederekt t1_j6lpwdw wrote

That sounds nearly believable, but… I have a hard time believing any pets would be getting 100 million dollars if it were that easy to disrupt. Right? Like, people get very weird around money. Are you saying that those people’s families just happen to be very nice and not have any problem with the poodle getting all the money? Or just that the judge happened to think it was a reasonable use of the money.

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turkeygiant t1_j6lvuu4 wrote

Well the answer to that I think is that stories of these animals with trusts set up in wills are mostly apocryphal, though you could set up a trust while you were still alive if you had the cash and bypass the whole process.

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mygreensea t1_j6mix6z wrote

The answer is very simple: do what the owner of the body wishes. Since the owner is dead, the ownership passes to the next of kin. Now it is their body and they can do with it what they want.

Which is probably to fulfil the dead person’s wishes.

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Bugawd_McGrubber t1_j6l2hmg wrote

Responses:

  1. And yet, they're still alive so they care.
  2. If there is no afterlife, then yes, it doesn't matter. If there is an afterlife, I'm fairly certain they'll still care.
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recumbent_mike t1_j6l7lbg wrote

If there's an afterlife where you're in eternal bliss or torture, I'm fairly certain they wouldn't care much about how their correspondence makes them look.

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dashrendar t1_j6kciso wrote

You have to do/be something/one of such note that would warrant the public to even want to read your letters.

Have you done anything that would reach that threshold?

Or are you just a nobody like the rest of us and this 'scenario' would never be an actual thing?

Edit: Lots of people be thinking they are the main character at life I guess.

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DevinB333 t1_j6kdmfv wrote

I haven’t claimed to be anyone of significance. My statement still stands.

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Champion-of-Cyrodiil t1_j6kdwb0 wrote

> I hope I never attain the kind of fame ...

Pretty sure they already answered your questions.

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marineman43 t1_j6kgp1b wrote

Are you just generally this abrasive to everyone you meet as a matter of principle?

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AlmennDulnefni t1_j6kmy2q wrote

It's to make sure no one cares enough to dig into their personal correspondence after they've kicked the bucket.

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AngryTrucker t1_j6kluxw wrote

That context doesn't make invading privacy a justifiable thing.

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jleonardbc t1_j6kufp4 wrote

Correct, it merely challenges the other person's suggestion that this event represents "people seek[ing] out any and all correspondence I’ve had with anyone after my death."

This correspondence is notable for its content and recipient; it's not just "any and all with anyone." There aren't teams of researchers trying to track down Eliot's tossed-off thank-you note to his catsitter.

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dethb0y t1_j6kcw82 wrote

You should see the entire field of study dedicated to H. P. Lovecraft's letters. Of course, that motherfucker wrote more letters in his life than most people ever dream possible, so it kind of makes sense.

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Based_nobody t1_j6kov3p wrote

Any of them good? (good in this sense meaning applicable to literary theory, writing, etc?)

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ASilver76 t1_j6kpkkj wrote

It depends entirely on how much you like reading about things like xenophobia, bigotry, and antisemitism. And classism. Never forget classism.

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CVfxReddit t1_j6l33bo wrote

There’s one he wrote near the end of his life where he realizes how fucked up his thinking was and started to sound very left wing. Then died a couple weeks after

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Tat25Guy t1_j6kxlsu wrote

Yeah he hated everyone who wasn't a wealthy white educated Christian city dwelling New Englander of British descent

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lordpan t1_j6l1jra wrote

He was about as racist as a New Englander at the time (very racist).

I heard he repudiated some of his racist beliefs towards the end of his life but I could never find a source for this.

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arvidsem t1_j6l7q6a wrote

Be fair, he was way more racist than a normal New Englander. To be clear, the average New Englander was pretty damn racist, but H. P. Lovecraft would have placed first in the racism Olympics, but he refused to compete on the grounds that lesser people would be there.

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lordpan t1_j6ldcqc wrote

In what way was he more racist? Like, was he a KKK member during its New England revival in the 1920's?

I'd honestly be interested to hear. I wonder if it's more that his racist views are more accessible to us than the idle thoughts of a random New Englander.

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arvidsem t1_j6o94ti wrote

No, he was pretty damn racist even for living when and where he did.

There is a pretty good run down here. Skip the first half and start at "Response to those who say Lovecraft merely reflected the racism and hatred of his times"

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beldaran1224 t1_j6ldqqw wrote

Lovecraft was considered racist by the people of his time.

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Mcbrainotron t1_j6l6dh9 wrote

Where do fish people figure into all this?

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DFreestyle t1_j6l9lxu wrote

Fear of misceganation, and the past or future corruption of your bloodline.

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Gnochi t1_j6l9ibf wrote

Thalassophobia. Plus racism.

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lolexecs t1_j6kz7y3 wrote

At it’s root, it seems quite a lot of it is classism.

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SAT0725 t1_j6mzjzi wrote

> wrote more letters in his life than most people ever dream possible

Writing letters back then was essentially like writing online comments. I'd bet the average person writes way more "correspondence" today than in the 1920s if you count messages online and texts, etc.

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chortlingabacus t1_j6kb00e wrote

You can put an end to your worries by ensuring that any relatives who survive you are the Estate of James Joyce.

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DevinB333 t1_j6kb526 wrote

Or I’ll just continue my current trajectory of living and dying in obscurity

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recumbent_mike t1_j6l7cxl wrote

I have a feeling you're about to be the victim of a very colorful and exciting murder.

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grubas t1_j6l17xi wrote

Hold on, writing erotic letters about farty women

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the_automat t1_j6l3j0v wrote

And fucking a glove

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grubas t1_j6lsg43 wrote

Don't remember that, but to be honest, is that such a bad thing?

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nix-xon t1_j6kh4o7 wrote

Those MSN chat logs are coming back to haunt you

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setibeings t1_j6lyxn2 wrote

Oh, those are dead and gone.... Would be a reasonable thing to assume in a better world.

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mr_ji t1_j6kcs01 wrote

I hope I do so people will realize that we're all a little screwed up and should quit being so judgemental of each other over it

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CocoXolo t1_j6myfd2 wrote

I am an archivist and reading people's correspondence has unlocked this fear in me. Luckily, my life isn't that interesting. As much as, professionally, I want people to preserve their life's work, I 100% understand anyone who orders their correspondence destroyed.

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Based_nobody t1_j6koniw wrote

I'm sure our era's posting records and messages will be fished back out for cash by our descendents. Like genaeology+

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uncre8tv t1_j6lnifd wrote

examining your yelp reviews for some residue of genius.

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ScoutsOut389 t1_j6l5dns wrote

If you read the article you’d see that these were all written prior to his death.

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CharlotteLucasOP t1_j6ly6iw wrote

Better leak all the embarrassing DMs now and get it over with while you’re still alive.

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RustedCorpse t1_j6mmi3g wrote

James Joyce wanting to smell his wife's farts is my favourite tho.

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SAT0725 t1_j6mzdi5 wrote

Some letters are better than others. The final collection of Charles Bukowski's letters is fantastic.

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