Calculations of Death

Weber, in "Science as a Vocation", claims that because of the process of intellectualization, "we are not ruled by mysterious, unpredictable forces, but that, on the contrary, we can in principal control everything by means of calculation" (13). Weber's link between this new characteristic of society and that of the Western ideology behind death is what struck me the most, pointing out how calculation has become a hindrance upon how we live our lives. However, I believe that this new, calculative society may not be as limiting as Weber seems to think, especially when compared to the alternative. The mere fact that we could attempt to understand -or calculate- our living conditions (whether or not we truly wish to) is reason enough to claim that modern society has advanced in beneficial ways. To have the freedom and ability to vote but not care, as a similar example, seems arguably better than having no ability to vote but desperately desiring it. The same should go for the ability to examine our society.

But relating back to calculation's influence on life, Weber's example of how peasants could die "'old and fulfilled by life'" seems slightly naive; the conception of 'fulfillment' in the society that Weber is discussing seems drastically different than what we may know today. Granted, this could be because we are aware of more today due to intellectualization, and more exposed to a capitalist drive that we (think) leads to true fulfillment, i.e. the accumulation of wealth. One could also argue that this idea of an organic life cycle seems far too static, too nihilistic to be fully enjoyed (at least to the extent that Weber described; I would rather be part of an ever-increasing chain/ladder of life than a stationary circle...but maybe this is just my blind adherence to intellectualization). It seems more an issue of subjective pleasure within life than that of objective anxiety towards death. In essence, acknowledging more fulfillment out of a finite period of life that continues on -even if it's not experienced- in both directions is better than dying unfulfilled in a cyclical life, realizing there's more to life than what was initially thought to exist. Weber's argument here seems entirely based on opinion, and not an objectively verifiable claim towards universal fulfillment, and so I have a hard time believing how merely being able to calculate life that we will never experience is what has led to such harsh outlooks on life -or its cessation- as a whole.