The idea of immortality or eternal youth is not a new one at all. For example, it's a characteristic of many religions that seek to define paradise. So I guess the torture/curse aspect is that all of your friends and loved ones would grow old and die around you, hence the popularity of vampire culture/books/fiction because vampires can beget "children" usually through an "embrace" of some kind (that's often sexually charged) and thus create a companion for the ages.
So the thing I started to think about basically has to do with sharing a human experience with others. Is there nothing of value if it can't be shared? Eternal youth just means a person has virtually unlimited time. But what if we changed the situation a bit and made it unlimited money? Is essentially unlimited money worthless if it can't be shared? What about unlimited food? Or unlimited power? Is there no value to some supply even if the rest goes wasted?
What do you guys think? Do we need limits on things in order to truly see them as a blessing? I remember an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation in which the Q Continuum was so bored because they had everything that they could ever desire. I'd like to think that, if given the chance, and I were "cursed" with eternal youth that I'd somehow make the best of it, growing wealth over time to become a huge philanthropist to all mankind, to have enough time to read every single book ever written, and to have a body that doesn't suffer from aches and pains brought on by arthritis.
But maybe I should just see the movie in April and look at how the character Adaline deals with this supernatural curse. Or maybe she doesn't. Maybe she just ends up thinking everything is hunky dory.
The human experience is to be shared. That's the value of our existence.
ReplyDeleteWould we grow bored here on Earth like Q did in his world? Eventually. And sad that everyone we knew died. We might just disconnect after a while.
Eternal youth? Here on Earth, no thanks. You know where I'd save it for.
I'd hate to have eternal youth if I couldn't share it with the people I love. What good is never growing old if my loved ones all grew old and died beside me? It would be horrendous. I do love the premise of the movie though (I'd actually not heard about it until now!) and I'm a Blake Lively fan. Looking forward to seeing it :D
ReplyDeleteI'm more like the witch in Stardust. I'll cut out the heart of a fallen star to keep my youth!!!! Ha. Kidding. Mostly.
ReplyDeleteBut of course aging forces you to reflect. Sometimes with regret and sometimes with gratitude. I'd hate to be immortal and have to lose friends and family over and over again. That would be a curse.
Your post reminds me of a comment from Baby Herman in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit." He said something like, "It's awful to have the lust of a forty-year-old and the dingus of a one year old."
ReplyDeleteUnlimited resources does bad things to people. Almost always.
ReplyDeleteReally interesting questions...I just wish I could answer them. I tend to not wish for things I know I can't have.
ReplyDeleteIt probably would start to suck after a couple centuries.
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, I'd like eternal youth. In a pretty body though, not mine. I don't think I'd amass wealth - that just causes problems. But I'd find a way to live comfortably, and learn all the things I want to learn. Perhaps I would get bored after 10k years, but I'd like to take the risk :)
ReplyDeleteThere is something about one's 20s and the idea of immortality. That's when I was fascinated by the subject. But I realized that eventually I'll want to die. Not to be morbid, but because at some point, I'll be done. Why do we live? In the end, I think it's to gain experiences--with people, with ideas, with situations. At some point the lessons are exhausted.
ReplyDeleteBesides the thought of your own children getting "older" than you, I don't see the downside.
ReplyDeleteI'd rather have eternal youth than be a frail old man in a nursing home.
I'd love to look and feel young for my entire life, but unless I could share immortality with loved ones I wouldn't want to keep going. But I could definitely see you becoming a great philanthropist over the ages and making a difference. You would do a lot of good.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite Q line from Star Trek NG is when he said, "I don't work well in groups. It's hard to work in a group when you're omnipotent."
Reminds me of Tuck Everlasting. I would imagine that being eternally youthful would be awesome for a few decades, but over time? I might feel out of place in a world with automated cars and a fully solar powered society when I still remember what it's like to be alive without a computer in the home. And then the first computer in the home having a B: Floppy. And if I told people I knew this, and was X years old, I wouldn't be working in a mental health hospital anymore, but I'd still be there. :)
ReplyDeleteit is one of my most anticipated movies this year, if not the number one... my type of story and my type of cast! Love Blake! And Michiel Huisman is hot too ..and likes to get naked a lot :)
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