Would you enjoy the life of a brood-X cicada?
Sleep for 19 years, come out and have boisterous sex, and then die.
Is there any appeal to that lifestyle? Should people adopt the cicada lifestyle?
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27 Answers
I’m not even sure what their purpose is. I wouldn’t want to be one.
Depends on how enjoyable the dreams, sex, feasting and flying are.
My suggestion would be, after you die, see if you can find a spirit who was previously a brood-X cicada to comment on the experience before signing up to be reincarnated as one, and see how you feel about their description.
Without their perspective, it’s hard for me to judge.
Nevertheless, I’m pretty sure I’d rather be a pampered house cat.
It is barely preferable to the life cycle of a mayfly. An adult mayfly doesn’t even get to eat.
Cicadas do not spend all their time underground asleep. Link
I like the coming out and yelling really loud for, because of, and during, sex part. I could get down with that.
If there were a vast library underground maybe…..
@chyna It’s been a loooong pandemic…
Sounds kind of good to me right now. Do I have to find a cicada who wants to be me?
Thought it was only 17 years, though. 19, I don’t know.
Every animal’s sole purpose is to reproduce.
^^^ That’s all you do? Nothing else? I wouldn’t characterize reproduction as the sole purpose.
Sole purpose wouldn’t have to be sole activity. That just means reason for existence, as opposed to all the other things you can do with existence that have nothing to do with purpose. My purpose for existing is not to blow soap bubbles, but it’s fun to do anyway.
Not that I necessarily buy the purpose idea at all. I don’t really think we have any purpose, even if we do fulfill a function. If we weren’t here, I don’t think we’d be missed in any sense.
@Dutchess_III, what about plants?
I’d argue that while reproduction is how we all are here, it’s not our purpose. Evolution is a purposeless process.
I guess it has to do with how much brain power you have.
@raum Thanks so much for posting the link. I’d had no idea. Fiction doesn’t know how to be so strange and unbelievable.
I read a book about fungi and it covered this sort of thing pretty amazingly. It said that fungi use other living things for their own needs and they also service them, at least the species if not the individuals. It also said that fungi are more basic than any other life form.
@kneesox Yes, and I saw a great documentary about them called Fantastic Fungi. They really are the lifeblood of forests and indeed of much of life. I recommend it highly.
@janbb OMG! That movie is just [insert mind-blowing emoji here].
@kneesox I know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover blah blah. But have to admit I totally bought this book for its cover.
Why is the mushroom so popular? He’s a fungi to be with! ;-p
Damn it! I don’t have any internet so I can’t find the fungus movie. :(
@Brian1946 My kids and I play a game of quasi-Marco Polo. Where if someone shouts ”There’s a fungus among us!”, the others have to reply with ”There’s a fungus among us!!!”
Yeah. We’re bored.
It’s a pandemic.
@Dutchess_III I PMd you a link for later. :)
@raum I wouldn’t be surprised if you had a meticulously cultivated fungus field, where you and your kids are keeping it real! ;-o
I wish! Though we did get a mushroom grow kit off of Etsy for a science project while we were doing distance learning this year. Kids loved it—but I might have loved it more. :P
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