Yesterday I finished reading Lonesome Dove, and besides it being one of the best books (if not the best) I’ve ever read, it ended up being the book I really needed at this moment in time. I’ve struggled with a lot of anxiety regarding death lately, specifically the idea of being dead. While reading LD, I went from very much being aware of my own anxieties when Sean O’Brien died, to being a lot more at peace with the idea of dying when Gus passed (don’t get me wrong, I was definitely bawling when reading that scene).
Anyway, this got me thinking about how McMurtry deals with death in this book, and how we get to see the characters come to terms with their own inevitable endings (I’m mainly thinking about Wilbarger, Jake, Deets and Gus). I think for someone who can get a bit obsessed with death and dying, being confronted with it in this way (rather than trying to just not think about it) can almost be a bit healing. Especially the scene with Gus when he chooses death over a crippled life — I feel like human instinct would be to do anything to hold on, so I found it quite sobering to read about someone doing the opposite and embracing the end.
With that said, I’m not saying I’ll never fear death again, but this book sure has helped me make some sort of peace with it. Anyone had a similar experience when reading this book? How did the deaths in it affect you?
by chasingxghosts