observed, people generally experienced life-threatening
illness the way they experienced bad weather—as
somethingthatstruckwithlittlewarning.Andyoueither
got through it or you didn’t.
Dying used to be accompanied by a prescribed set of
customs.Guidestoarsmoriendi,theartofdying,were
extraordinarilypopular;amedievalversionpublishedin
Latin in 1415 was reprinted in more than a hundred
editionsacrossEurope.Peoplebelieveddeathshouldbe
acceptedstoically,withoutfearorself-pity orhopefor
anythingmorethantheforgivenessofGod.Reaffirming
one’sfaith,repentingone’ssins,andlettinggoofone’s
worldly possessions and desires were crucial, and the
guidesprovidedfamilieswithprayersandquestionsfor
thedyinginordertoputthemintherightframeofmind
during their final hours. Last words came to hold a
particular place of reverence.
Thesedays, swift catastrophic illnessis theexception.
Formost people, deathcomes only afterlong medical
struggle with an ultimately unstoppable
condition—advanced cancer, dementia, Parkinson’s
disease,progressive organ failure (most commonly the
heart,followedinfrequencybylungs,kidneys,liver),or
elsejusttheaccumulatingdebilitiesofveryoldage.Inall
such cases, death is certain, but the timing isn’t. So
everyonestruggleswiththisuncertainty—withhow,and
when,toacceptthatthebattleislost.Asforlastwords,
they hardly seem to exist anymore. Technology can
sustain our organs untilwe are wellpast the pointof
awarenessandcoherence.Besides,howdoyouattendto
thethoughtsand concernsofthedyingwhenmedicine