Parmenides’ poem is a beast. To discuss it in its entirety would be a vast undertaking. The point which interested me the most was the entire concept of “not-being”. It sparked a memory of a passage that I read around a year ago. This requires a semi-tangential deviation from Parmenides, but since it’s still philosophical in nature we’ll say that it’s fine. Right? Right.
For my Russian history class we were required to pick a fictional book by a Russian author, read it, and analyze it in a paper. Not having much knowledge in the area, I chose blindly and came away with The Foundation Pit, by Andrey Platonov. The entire book is a satirical, yet poignant commentary on early Stalinism, collectivization of agriculture, industrialization, etc. It has some incredibly bizarre moments (think huge anthropomorphic bear which can sniff out traitorous peasants and is also a blacksmith), but it also has some thought provoking passages. The excerpt in question involves the character Prushevsky and his intense depression and suicidal tendencies. In a pitiful, heartbreaking, and memorable passage, while pondering a far away star, he wonders whether or not it would be better that he die rather than continue to endure living (Platonov 21). Later a couple characters have a discussion about him:
“What made him be?”
“He was scared of not being.”
(Platonov 78).
When I read Parmenides’ poem and the goddess discussed the unknowable “path of not-being”, The Foundation Pit was the first thing to cross my mind. I think it is a common theme throughout humanity to fear “not-being”. Something which is impossible to understand or grasp. Perhaps this was not the intent of Parmenides or the goddess, but not-being makes me think of nothingness which makes me think of death. And Prushevsky had the same reservations about it. He feared not being--as I think we all do.
This might sound exceptionally atheist, but this is where I believe religious views of an afterlife come in. They soothe the fears of nothingness and provide an alternative to not being. They are convenient human constructs to make death seem less absolute and terrifying. Because people want to feel special and chosen, like Parmenides on the seldom trodden path to knowledge. No one wants to believe that they only have the time that their mortal bodies allow them. So one might not judge too harshly those who believe that a bright afterlife awaits them with the warm embraces of their ancestors. Because after all, not being is a far less tidy and satisfying conclusion.
