Choosing How to Die

Reading the final chapter of the story of Sherlock Holmes made me again aware of the ever present reality that everyone dies. There are arguments to be made that those who are dead live on in the lives of those still living, and will continue to live on as long as their stories are told. In addition, their work often lives on in the art that they have created, or the recorded impacts that they have made on society. This story makes a compelling argument of this type as well. It is assured to the reader in the end of the story that, "it will be within the memory of the public how completely the evidence which Holmes had accumulated exposed their organization, and how heavily the hand of the dead man weighed upon them"(Doyle). Still though, while his work remains relevant, and retains its impact on society, Holmes remains dead. He may continue to impact others now that he is gone, but he will no longer personally experience those effects. He is a physical part of this world no longer. I think that this raises the important question of how one wishes to die.

This, perhaps somewhat inevitably, reminded me of Timothy Treadwell. Treadwell is an excellent modern day comparison to Holmes. As we saw in Holmes' last letter to Watson, he was exceedingly prepared not only for his own death, but to die for his work. Holmes could have escaped danger in this situation by succumbing to Moriarity's demands and backing off of his case, but he chose not to. Treadwell too, could have avoided death at the hands of the bears that he so loved. However, they both decided that this was their desired fate. In many ways, control of the circumstances of one's own death is the ultimate control that one can have. While they may not be able to eliminate death, they can greet it on their own terms. A final triumph for the doomed; a final "fuck you" to death.