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| "Waiting Room for the Beyond" (1988) by John Register |
What did you think of the main character’s assertion that her cancer diagnosis “made every room a waiting room” (53)?
Since the human condition is terminal (we all die in the end), isn't this always true?
Do you think looking at life as a waiting room is morbid and depressing?
What are the potential benefits of thinking about life this way? What measures might someone take to foreground these benefits in their life?
Does this relate back to Plato’s allegory?
Yes, life is always a waiting room, and while some might find this depressing one can also look at this view as a way of taking some control over one’s own death. By looking at life this way we can take actions that lead to a longer healthier life, but we can never have full control of our own deaths. No matter how many precautions we take we will always be susceptible to an accident or unforeseen diagnoses. In this way the waiting room is similar to Plato’s cave, we look out at potential causes of death never knowing which one will be the one that ends our own lives.
ReplyDeleteWhat she means is that she is moreso that she is now consciously waiting to see how much closer or further she is in the moment to death at any given point since the diagnosis of her breast cancer. While one could say life is like a waiting room, the problem is that we don't typically think about death all the time in the same way. I think her statement is more applicable to when one is confronted with death directly in a specific sitation.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment. While yes, we are all technically in a waiting room for death, it doesn't really feel like it until you know you are dying. We aren't really looking at life as a waiting room for our death until we know for sure we are dying. When you are diagnosed with cancer or a terminal illness, you know you're going to be dying in the coming months/days/years. Before that, you don't know that death is coming that soon. I'm curious do you think the majority of people diagnosed with cancer look at their life as a waiting room for death?
DeleteI do think that thinking of life as a waiting room is sad or depressing in a way. Waiting rooms are transitional places, where you wait for something. While its true that everyone dies, I believe that its a waste to think of life as just a waiting room for death when there is so much that can be experienced in a lifetime. While it is true that life is technically a waiting room, I believe that it's unnecessary for an average person to think in this way. However, for someone in a situation like Yee, she probably does feel like a waiting room. Waiting for the diagnosis that will tell her whether she gets to live a full life or not.
ReplyDeleteThe main character's assertion of "Every room is a waiting room" is the reality that she's in a sort of limbo. Waiting for the next step, waiting for the cancer to take over, waiting for the surgery, waiting for death, waiting because she can't do anything else. Her whole life has become a waiting game because of her cancer.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that means that life itself is a waiting game or that we are all just waiting around to die. To me life is an entire planet with a hovering lifespan of about 85 years if everything goes well. You have the flowers that are like cells, the hills are the adventures you take, so on and so forth. Looking at life as just a waiting game seems like a dull way to exist.
I don't see any benefits of looking at life as if you're constantly in a waiting room. The meaning of life is to live it, not wait around for it to live you. Yes, things do happen, sometimes you don't have any other choice but to wait, but there are always games or books in the waiting room.
The human condition is terminal, but I think people don’t usually see “every room as a waiting room” due to our mortality not being actively challenged under normal circumstances, but when stricken with a possibly fatal disease, it makes our mortality and weakness much more apparent.
ReplyDeleteWhile this mindset can be viewed as morbid or depressing, I think it is important that we recognize the truth of the human condition. I think even coming to terms with that idea can make someone more appreciative of the life they currently have. However, focusing too much on the fragility of the human condition can be quite demoralizing, so I think it’s best to recognize that fragility but not let it consume.
Like Plato’s cave allegory, some people are apprehensive to acknowledge the truth after being conditioned to accept what’s right in front of them. We exist as the chained men watching the shadows, not consciously aware of our own mortality. Hearing of truth upsets the chained men, as it upsets us to acknowledge our own weaknesses. However, like the freed man, I think it’ll make up happier overall to accept the truth of our existence.
Yes, because our life, while short in the face of eternity, feels as if it is an endless waiting room. However, if you look at life as just you waiting to inevitably die, then that is very depressing and morbid. Life should be celebrated and looked upon as a special gift to cherish. This is why I personally do not see any benefits of looking at life through such morbid lenses.
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