A Lockean Analysis Part 1: People Accepting The Inevitability Of Death Is What Gives The Control Over Their Purpose In Life

Fate always plays a role in the destiny of any human as the outcome of any person's life is always predestined and preset, but the way a person chooses to respond and journey to that set destination is not. Humans will always have the freedom of choice in even the smallest of matters in their lives. Death is inevitable because life will always comes to an end, but the only way a person can truly enjoy their life to the fullest is by accepting that what will come will come. It is only after this realization will people realize that their purpose in life is not arranged by fate; their purpose in life is to make their own purpose until death comes. Living in routine and according to schedule is not necessarily a bad thing but living a completely mundane life, ignorant of making a purpose is what causes people to live their lives meaninglessly. These ideas of freedom of choice and making a purpose are exemplified through John Locke's philosophy on identity and human nature in isolation and assimilation. Human identity matures and develops based on how well a person balances his/her isolation from society and assimilation within society.

The future circumstances in life always happen for a reason, and that reason is fate. Fate's control over how life ends is not in the hands of a human to decide, but how people acknowledge and reciprocate to the end destination is in their hands. People can do as they please, but they have to realize that they have that freedom of choice. Humans constantly look at the bereavement of life as something to mourn, and they spend their entire lives doing so, missing out the enjoyments of life (Thagard, 2012) . Thus, people miss out on their purpose in life—making their own purpose until the inevitable comes. Finally, those who live their lives in a mundane manner and remain oblivious of their purpose, never find true happiness as their life is meaningless. Primarily, humans should learn how to move past the concept of death, and it is only after moving past this concept can a person truly enjoy his/her life as is. In many religions and faiths around the world, followers of said faiths have one goal which is usually to achieve greatness in death (Crabtree, 2015). In Christianity, followers aim to reach heaven (Talbott, 2017). In Hinduism, followers aim to reach moksha, which means the end of the rebirth cycle as the human has achieved the ultimate enlightenment (Olivelle, n.d.). Thus, regardless of a person's faith, s/he aims to live his/her life around the idea that s/he will one day die, and when s/he does, s/he must be ready for it (Crabtree, 2015). Through following through on this idea, a person's purpose is usually to find happiness in death rather than create happiness in life (Crabtree, 2015). People have a very surface level expectation for life which is why when a person lives it to the fullest, s/he only lives it to the fullest in the name of a better death (Thagard, 2012).

John Locke believed that consciousness and human identity went hand-in-hand because the consciousness is in charge of rational thought in humans so that same consciousness that makes those rational decisions is also reflected on the personal identity; any portion of unconsciousness or forgetfulness have no impact on human identity because it has interrupted the human consciousness and thus, humans have lost sight of themselves so he raised questions about personal identity at the time (Piccirillo, 2010). In relation, humans are heavily conscious of death which is why humans place a great deal of emphasis on it during life. Following Lockean theory, because humans place heavy emphasis on death and being ready for it, it impacts an individual's identity (Piccirillo, 2010). Piccirillo defines identity as the pattern seen in a person that creates his/her uniqueness; his/her beliefs, views and perspectives makes identity, but Locke believed that the experiences, which a human is conscious of experiencing, allow humans to create those beliefs which leads to the formation of identity (Piccirillo, 2010). A person's conscious experiences on the topics death, such as a parent or someone of importance passing on his/her beliefs surrounding death to said person, leads the person to create the opinions s/he has on death currently (Talbott, 2017). Whether it is reincarnation or heaven or belief that the afterlife does not exist, people live around the concept of death (Talbott, 2017). Perhaps a person will do good deeds his/her entire life aiming to reach heaven, but s/he only accomplishes the good deeds in the name of death, and these actions are something s/he are conscious of because s/he is conscious of the goal s/he aims to reach (Talbott, 2017). These beliefs, goals, and actions are all part of said person's identity, also proving the Lockean theory to essentially to be a cycle all in itself (Piccirillo, 2010).

In relation, humans are heavily conscious of death which is why humans place a great deal of emphasis on it during life. Following Lockean theory, because humans place heavy emphasis on death and being ready for it, it impacts an individual's identity (Piccirillo, 2010). Piccirillo defines identity as the pattern seen in a person that creates his/her uniqueness; his/her beliefs, views and perspectives makes identity, but Locke believed that the experiences, which a human is conscious of experiencing, allow humans to create those beliefs which leads to the formation of identity (Piccirillo, 2010). A person's conscious experiences on the topics death, such as a parent or someone of importance passing on his/her beliefs surrounding death to said person, leads the person to create the opinions s/he has on death currently (Talbott, 2017). Whether it is reincarnation or heaven or belief that the afterlife does not exist, people live around the concept of death (Talbott, 2017). Perhaps a person will do good deeds his/her entire life aiming to reach heaven, but s/he only accomplishes the good deeds in the name of death, and these actions are something s/he are conscious of because s/he is conscious of the goal s/he aims to reach (Talbott, 2017). These beliefs, goals, and actions are all part of said person's identity, also proving the Lockean theory to essentially to be a cycle all in itself (Piccirillo, 2010).