Death's Diary

We have discussed the fact that Death shares many characteristics with humans, and one of these characteristics seems to be that he has very little power, and cannot control the outcomes of events occurring in the world. Although Death, as his name suggests, is responsible for making sure that humans die, he makes it clear that he does not kill them or decide that they must die. In his diary, Death describes war as "the new boss who expects the impossible" (309), continuing an idea he introduces earlier that taking people's souls is a job he is obligated to do, but not one he would like to carry out. I find it especially interesting that he mentions God in his last diary chapter. Death appeals to a higher power in an attempt to justify the killing of so many people, which is interesting because many humans might see Death as a higher power who might explain why they must die. Death is obviously extremely affected by the killings of so many people, and “shiver[s] when [he] remember[s]” (250) the bodies he sees, but cannot take any action to change his job, though it is clear that it is painful for him to take the souls of the victims of the war. It seems as though Death becomes more emotional as the war continues and he takes more souls, to the point that he says that “if there ever was a time when [he needs] distraction, this [is] it” (250), because he finds the deaths so unbearable, but cannot do any more to stop them than humans can.