Although given, death causes a variety of emotions and reactions. It is a source of fear, pain and sadness, weakness and anger as well as creativity and inspiration. Although we are aware of our own end, the thought and experience of death reaches us through the loss of the other. The other in the form of a loved one, friend, acquaintance, or even stranger, becomes the reference point to give a faint outline to a non-transferable experience, an event that reminds us of the limits of human perception and language. No other issue intertwined with human existence might have undoubtedly attracted the interest of such a wide range of scientific disciplines, nor have inspired so many literary and artistic works, nor have been the subject of so many daily discussions and informations, nor have given rise to so many existential questions and angsts.

In this research work an attempt is made to conceptualize death and mortality. Interest lies in the dominant narratives, the consequent social strategies to manage mortality, and in the artistic endeavors that are taking place to represent death and grief.

The study is limited to the approaches of Western societies and its timeline spans from ancient times since today. Light is shed on the views of Martin Heidegger and Emmanuel Levinas and two major artistic representations are analyzed from the perspective of the two philosophers, identifying their different point of views.

Passing from the "familiar" death of antiquity and the Middle Ages to the "outrageous" death of modern societies, the research results in the "forbidden" death of the most recent revolution, the digital afterlife.