Fictional deaths that shape us
Which fictional deaths have stayed with you and how have they shaped your understanding of death, grief and mortality? We discuss a few of ours here. Spoiler alerts are included up front! Promise.
Well, hello there,
KV here again. I assure you that LV will be penning the next piece. Probably.
Recently, we’ve been reminiscing about the fictional deaths that have stayed with us.
It’s hard to remember the first ones we were exposed to, but it very well could have been whilst watching The NeverEnding Story at a Wolverhampton cinema in 1984 (gulp). Or perhaps when Dad read Charlotte’s Web to us. I’m pretty sure I had my fingers in my ears or head under the duvet for that one.
In this piece, we table some of the fictional deaths that have marked us in one way or another. We think it’s interesting to reflect on how they may have shaped our understanding and expectations of death, grief and mortality.
And what about you? Which fictional deaths stand out for you? How did those deaths make you feel? Wanna swap stories?
We’ve just published a Puny Mortal podcast episode on this very topic.
In Episode 3, we find ourselves sharing personal experiences of impactful fictional deaths portrayed in books, TV and films, such as 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', ‘Alien’, and the soap opera 'Neighbours' (and more).
But BEWARE - some of these deaths are quite graphic and might not be for more sensitive ears.
Also, a heads-up that KV is a terrible spoiler-machine. She blabs out spoilers left, right and centre in the episode. So Episode 3 comes with a huge, overarching SPOILER ALERT (see chapter timestamps below for specific spoilers).
** SPOILER ALERT KLAXON **
03:27-10:20 - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
10:21-15:30 - Gremlins
15:31-19:08 - Neighbours
19:09-20:55 - Alien
21:29-28:05 - Harry Potter - specifically things that happen in the Deathly Hallows
As always we end Episode 3 by 'getting mortal' and sharing some of our own funeral wishes with you, specifically our choices of funeral ceremony venue AND our music choices. We could legit talk about music for funerals all day. We had to be very disciplined for the podcast. We kept it to three tunes between us. Though we did have a bit of an unexpected fight over one song.
Now, DO NOT read on if you want to avoid spoilers on the fictional deaths mentioned above!
But I wanted to flesh out some of the things we mention in Episode 3, including contextual points and relevant links.
We left Wolverhampton in 1988 and moved to Trentham in Stoke-on-Trent, three days before I was due to start secondary school. Big feels.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was written by C.S. Lewis (1950). It's 206 pages and recommended for 6-12 year olds. Boomer children were clearly hardcore (or traumatised by the reading experience).
I feel like we were forced by our parents to watch this BBC adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe on Sunday evenings in 1988, before we left Wolverhampton. Just watched a bit. It’s good. Sorry I moaned about it, Mum.
Here's Aslan's death scene in the film Narnia. I just re-watched it. Maaaaaan, it's a lot. Tilda Swinton as the White Witch is everything though.
Gremlins (1984, directed by Joe Dante), rated 15 in the UK. I was actually just SEVEN when I watched this at Helen's birthday video party. I left the party pale and clammy.
The Gremlins character I am talking about is Kate Beringer, Billy's girlfriend, played by Phoebe Cates.
Watch the Gremlins chimney death story for yourself. I tried to fact-check that Kate's dad was drunk before his death (as alleged by LV), but couldn't find this info.
We loved Neighbours so much in the late 1980s & 90s. Regarding Kerry Bishop’s death, you can watch the episode here. Her death scene is actually just 1 minute in length. Starts at 07:46. Incredible what can be covered in 60 seconds. KEZZA!!!
Alien (1979, Ridley Scott) and Kane's death. I love the casual smoking at the spaceship dining table pre-chestburster scene. So retro. If you haven't seen this before, be warned! There is convulsing and explosive blood and twitchy death throes. John Hurt is a total ledge.
The final Harry Potter book is Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007). So my son was only six when we read it together. Crikey. I’m specifically referring to Chapter 36: The Flaw in the Plan.
Having mentioned the Harry Potter series, we'd also like to take this opportunity to say that TRANS LIVES MATTER VERY MUCH. IYKYK.
LV chose Time as a Symptom by Joanna Newsom as a song for her future funeral.
I chose Play Dead by Bjork for my funeral. I also chose a cover of Bjork's Joga by Georgi Kay. We have a tussle over who gets this song.
This is how you pronounce Bjork like a pro.
We both came across the Joga cover while watching Top of the Lake. Have you seen it? It's VERY challenging but VERY good.
Finally, you can order your own GET MORTAL funeral planning zine kit from our webshop. There’s a downloadable PDF or a riso-printed hard copy that we post to your home.
Let us know if you give Episode 3 of our Puny Mortal Podcast a listen. We’d love to hear your thoughts and what resonates with you.
Until next time.
LOVE YOU BYE