By quoting Nabokov's words, this paper explores modern people's imagination of life and death, and points out that life is seen as a brief light between two eternal darkness. In "Like a Flowing Light: Birth, Death," Charlier challenges this universal view of life and death, arguing that it represents a materialistic and posthumanist understanding of life. She pointed out that although technological development attempts to overcome human fragility and death, these attempts are accompanied by ethical and institutional shocks, as well as concerns about catastrophic consequences. Charlier emphasized that philosophical thinking on the issue of life has become urgent under the challenges of post humanism and transhumanism. We should re-examine whether the pursuit of a just world and a better life needs to first cherish and treat the endowment of life and ethics with kindness. She inherited and expanded Levinas' thinking on the issue of life and death, deepening the philosophical examination of these issues from the perspective of birth, and comprehensively and profoundly exploring the philosophical significance of birth for the first time.

Philosophy and Death: Born to Die

Explored the difference between humans and gods in ancient Greek philosophy, namely the concepts of "dead" and "undead", and how humans transcend the limitations of life by pursuing greatness. Heidegger and Socrates' viewpoints are cited to illustrate how humans comprehend the meaning of life through understanding death. Socrates believed that through the love of wisdom, the philosopher's soul can transcend the body and death, while Heidegger emphasized the concept of "being towards death" and regarded death as the core of ontology. Augustine believed that humans should love the infinite beyond death. Modern philosophy, especially Heidegger and Sartre, regards death as the end of life. Heidegger sees death as the possibility of individual existence, while Sartre believes that death deprives individuals of their freedom and is a manifestation of absurdity and contingency. Both believe that the relationship between death and others is inevitable, but the focus is always on the individual's death.

Birth as the beginning of a new miracle: Born for love

Explored the philosophical significance of individual birth, pointing out that although philosophers often overlook or view the birth of life negatively, literature, religion, and some philosophers such as Arendt and Levinas believe that birth has positive value. Hugo's poetry praises the birth of children as a symbol of divinity and hope. Arendt regards nativity as the core of philosophical thought, emphasizing that individual birth is the starting point for action and a new beginning, while Levinas explores the potential of birth from a moral and ethical perspective. The chapter also discusses the understanding of individual and intergenerational relationships, as well as how to find a balance between individual value and inheritance.

Eternal Life: Repair and Renewal from Light to Light

In his paper, Charlier explores the different understandings of human existence and death in Greek and Hebrew cultures, emphasizing the concept of "Adam's son" in Hebrew culture and revealing the uniqueness and limitations of human intergenerational inheritance. The genealogy and names in the Bible reflect memories of birth, with each name representing an irreplaceable individual. The Hebrew tradition focuses more on this world, believing that death is a human destiny, but no longer has sharp negative characteristics. The Israeli patriarch passed away peacefully, accepting his own limitations. The chain of life enlightens people that the individual is just one link, neither the beginning nor the end. Levinas' philosophical thought was deeply inspired by Jewish tradition, affirming the transcendence of birth over death, and creatively interpreting the moral connotation of birth. He believes that individuals achieve the "birth" of subjectivity through their response to responsibility. Levinas uses "motherhood" to describe the reproduction and inheritance of the relationship of responsibility and love between individuals and others. This way of understanding life from a birth perspective is different from the philosopher's usual death perspective. Levinas reminds people to cherish the discovery of emotions, as the emotional trauma caused by the death of others can reveal another aspect of death to us. In the era of technology, when digital survival becomes possible, can life lack the voice and breath of birth, or only mean information and material interaction? When death can be suspended infinitely, what will be suspended may not only be limited, but also the feeling of rebirth. Charlier pointed out that every newborn baby is an affirmation of the sacred origin of life, and respecting the birth and death of others is more important than contemplating one's own death.