I feel weird about death acknowledgements. It seems shitty to me that we often forget about great people who’ve done a lot for humanity (or just our society/in-group) up until they die, and then suddenly there’s an outpouring of remembrance and good feels. A far better time for that sort of thing would’ve been one month before the death, so at least the subject could experience that appreciation before s/he is gone. The whole “Oh no, this person is dead now, let us suddenly remember they existed!” feels so disingenuous and disrespectful to me.
But on the other hand, humans need Schelling Points, and there is no better Schelling Point to remember someone who had done great and wonderous things in their prime. Maybe we need a new Schelling Point. Maybe we need to have a societal tradition of Roasting someone, when they retire, or when they reach the 70th birthday, or something. A party to acknowledge how awesome they are, and the great things they’ve done.
Anne Rice died last week, December 11th. I didn’t say much of anything, for the reasons I’ve just outlined. But that being said… she is one of the founding artists behind the modern Goth aesthetic. I love that aesthetic, and I consider it a big part of who I am. The fact that I haven’t said anything has really been bothering me. I can’t just not pay any tribute to someone who was this foundational to something I feel so strongly about.
So. Anne Rice died Dec 11th, 2021, at the age of 80. She wrote a great many things, and is most famous for Interview With The Vampire, of The Vampire Chronicles. It really, really sucks that we didn’t find a cure for death before we lost her. May her name be long remembered in the minds of mankind.