I think the first question that pops into my mind is what you mean by important..important to our survival, perhaps…important to our need for religions, institutions, maybe…important on a day to day basis, possibly

It might well be. It certainly take up a great deal of thought and planning in most cultures and societies.

I think birth is more important.

It depends on who’s doing the killing.

I’d say it’s second to birth.

What about education?

Death is mostly permanent so it probably isn’t such an important aspect after you’re gone. Unless you are a zombie and Fluther members have tons of information and opinions on that subject.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir I was using the term ‘important’ in a general sense but feel free to speculate all possibilities. Is there any particular social institution in which you believe death is definitely not the most important aspect of its workings?
@jamms Interesting notion. However what would become of humans if our species population continued to grow without any means of it being lowered?
@Ender Without mortality what purpose is there in rushing education, be it formal or otherwise?

@nially_bob Mass chaos.

I don’t know if I’d say death is the most important part of society, but it’s certainly necessary. Overpopulation will soon become a real and troubling issue if humans don’t get a grip on the reality that old age and death are ok and vital to our survival as a species. I don’t see the big fuss over death really. It’s just another phase, just like birth. No better, no worse. The only reason I think people think negatively of death is because in our own selfishness, we grieve. Maybe selfisheness isn’t the best word… But what I’m saying is we’re sad our loved one are gone, but I’m pretty sure they’re not too sad about leaving this horrid place called Earth and life.

@Nially_Bob
Do prerequisites necessarily surpass all prospects in importance?

@Nially_Bob I do not believe death is the most important aspect of society. Perhaps, based on you comments to @jamms and @Ender above, Balance would be considered the most important. Death plays varying degrees of importance to groups depending on the culture. Any aspect of life and culture when thrown out of balance gains a higher significance. (for example: through over population, genocide, high mortality rates, famine, or whatever)

hmm.. not perfectly sure how to explain myself but.. i vote memory over death.

any bad thing that happens to you is only bad because of the memory of the bad thing and the memory of the bad consequences. if you could not remember anything bad EVER befalling you.. then no bad thing would matter to you. similarly, if a family doesn’t ever remember losing a son to your drunken driving, then your drunken driving wasn’t really a problem for them. it’s convoluted though.. these are just simple examples.

Death and taxes, some might say.

@MrKnowItAll Good point
@Ender I apologise but i’m not entirely certain I understand your comment.
@essieness I concur with the majority of what you mention. Rationally death is, as you state, merely another part of life and it is likely we only fear it due to our experience, learnings and selfishness (I believe a combination of these three is what most significantly dictates our reactions and feelings on the subject given that different cultures seem to perceive the concept differently). Selfishness is a fitting word in my opinion because though it has bad connotations connected to it selfishness, in my opinion, is not an inevitably bad feeling.
Your mention of life on earth being a ‘horrid’ state of existence I disagree with. For all of our mortal faults we achieve much would you not agree my friend?
@teirem1 Excellent point. Balance definitely is an important aspect of society (or arguably anything) and perhaps the most important given that it encompasses every other aspect of society. Is there anything else which is similar in this regard?
@ninjacolin Memory is important to civilised society but is this so for a human society in general and if so would you consider it equally important to the ability for humans to die?
@shadling21 Taxes tend to be more persistent

death is only important to people who will remember the deceased… meaning, death isn’t a problem for the dead person really. It’s a problem for the people left alive who mourn, or consider it an injustice perhaps.. even if the person is a stranger it always seems sad and unfair for a life to be needlessly extinguished.. but only to the people who are left alive to observe it.

once we observe something, we cannot forget it (unless via brain damage or other irregularities) so, i think we actually seek to protect our memories from being blemished with any form of atrocity or injustice.

death itself as a concept isn’t so bad. we kill mosquitoes all the time. or we kill people at war when we feel it is necessary, or in various kinds of self-defense. death itself we can handle, it seems clear to me. it’s the memory of atrocity, disgust, shame, injustice and the like..

truly negative memories, essentially, is what we wish to avoid. (which is why we don’t mind and even enjoy sad or otherwise negative fiction.. because it’s just pretendish)

Not to me it is. Why would I obsess over something that is inevitable?

I’m glad I’ve gotten over any fear of death at a young age.

We treat it like it is, but I rather think life is a little (lot) more important. Fear of death is all-pervasive, though.

@Nially_Bob Yes, I would agree with you. I was being a little melodramatic when I said Earth and life are horrid. What I meant was in comparison to what I envision afterlife to be like. Being with God (which is what I believe will happen to me when I die) is going to rock so much harder than Earth. That said, our time here is purposeful and needed. Because I believe in reincarnation, I believe that every trip to Earth is a learning experience. This time around, I’m learning a lot and frankly, I’m looking forward to going Home. Does that clear up my answer??

Great discussion btw.

Reproduction is more important. Everything in our society revolves around reproduction. Getting laid, having kids, protecting family, supporting family. It’s all about passing on our genes.

Natural death occurs when reproduction doesn’t matter anymore. Early death is tragic because the victim could not pass on his or her genes.

@Grisson Where have you been lately, my dear?

Not sure if any group of people can agree on what’s the most important aspect of human society. It’s helpful to sort out which is the most meaningful to us, though perhaps collectively, more can be understood if we all piece together how whichever thing weaves into all the others.

Others basically said the main points (especially Simone) Even if we don’t worry about it too much, and live in conditions relatively free of an unusually unsettling amount of death, our mortality looms over us, subconsciously… which affects a lot, how we deal with that.

Most societies seem to do what they can to distance themselves from dealing with it. Based on that fascinating link Jo posted once, there’s all sorts of ways this is done, which really affect even the structure (not just the experience of) a society. Some celebrate it in order to temper the pain of another’s passing (& how that reminds us of our fate) – thus that’s very visible in their culture; others seriously repress it, and by extension, keep those most likely to die away from where most people live.

Other possible vital aspects of societies; how gender is conceived of (& how that in terms influences culture, politics, &tc.) ... if force is used, who can use it legitimately? ... the distribution of wealth & power… in a different sense, how those in other societies are viewed/treated; and conversely, how a society views itself/its people.

Of course, others find other topics more interesting/important – ever wonder about that? Why are we interested in x in the first place, and why aren’t we into y but they are? No clue at all – you?

@ninjacolin Are you defining what is important by what humans perceive to be ‘good’ or ‘bad’? If so I would disagree, what is of the highest importance currently is that which is required for a secure and comfortable lifestyle amongst our species. Our perceptions may deem some proposals to be ‘bad’ while they may ensure the aforementioned requirements making them important while being disliked and the same can be true of some considering the same proposals ‘good’. With this said, I am still contemplating whether memory is of greater importance than death in society generally.
@dynamicduo How would you define a lack of fear of death? Will your peripheral nervous system not act similarly to all other living creatures should you encounter a situation in which you may die?
@Jiminez What is life without death?
@essieness Yes it does thank you. Though I personally am not fond of the idea, it is understandable that many would favour paradise (that is the paradise of meeting ‘God’ as you describe it) over ‘limbo’. You claim to believe in both reincarnation and the existence of a deity, would you be so kind as to elaborate on how these two beliefs co-exist from your perspective?
@Grisson But if death were no longer a possibility would reproduction continue to possess purpose?
@resmc Hey Res! Coo-eeee! waves wildly
I feel you have summarised the matter well my friend. Quite simply there is no aspect of human society I (nor you it would appear, please correct me if I am wrong) believe to be the most important. If this discussion presents evidence of anything it is that our opinions on such a matter are far too varied and tempered by our own lives and experiences to be rationally deduced as objective.
Why some are interested in X initially while others are not? That is actually an excellent question. My immediate thought is quite simply that everyone is different and therefore will more easily take an interest in varying subjects.

@Nially_Bob Sure. I believe that God made my perfect soul. My soul needs to learn empathy for human life. Therefore, my soul comes to earth as many times as it takes to learn that empathy and have and understanding for humanity. When my soul has learned all it wants or needs, it will return Home to be with God for eternity.

@essieness I have never learned of such a belief. It is fascinating and I thank you for sharing it with me. I hope your understanding of this world is attained swiftly so that you may meet this God soon my friend.

@Nially_Bob Thanks, I do too! And thank you for a stimulating conversation. :)

@Nially_Bob, first of all @resmc said: “others find other topics more interesting/important – ever wonder about that? Why are we interested in x in the first place, and why aren’t we into y but they are? No clue at all – you?”

here too I expect the Memory explanation to provide the answer.

the reason why you care about your mom is because you don’t remember hanging out with MY mom for your whole life. This manifests in cases like.. say there was a fire and both your mom and mine were in the building.. the person who would be most on your mind, your primary concern, would be your mom rather than mine.

I submit that this is how it is for every issue. We’ve all spent our time creating different sets of memories through our different experiences. Examples: If your memories involve years of law enforcement, you most likely think law enforcement needs more attention by the government. If your memories involve international development, you most likely think poverty needs more attention by the government.. If your memories include devote service to the catholic god, you likely think anti-abortion needs more attention from the government.

@Nially_Bob asked: “Are you defining what is important by what humans perceive to be ‘good’ or ‘bad’?”

Yes. Our priorities are born from our individual experiences in life.. from the memories those experiences have created for us in the present.

@Nially_Bob you said it best: “our opinions on such a matter are far too varied and tempered by our own lives and experiences to be rationally deduced as objective.”

@Nially_Bob: The question you’ve asked me is actually a bit different from a fear of death. One’s nerves twitching in a dangerous situation is the instinct of survival, not a fear of death. I will certainly follow that instinct and strive to survive.

What I mean by a lack of fear of death, is I am not scared of it. I am not scared when my relatives are near death, I am not worried about my afterlife, I do not dwell on death at all. I have come to terms with its eventuality.

I wouldn’t say the most important, but I would say it’s a great indicator of a society’s larger values as whole, how they view family, the importance of ancestors, for example.

It can come to be a rather defining aspect of the individuals’ lives who it touches. In society, it has always existed and can be seen as a barometer of how the person was valued (or not) in their lives, by what type of funeral they are given.