The Boy Who Trapped Death in a Nut

BYHALEY KYNEFINJANUARY 9, 2023PHILOSOPHY

There is a Scottish folk tale that provides an apt metaphor for the ethical-philosophical problem of the Covid era. It is called “Death in a Nut”, and my favorite version is the one told by Daniel Allison in his book,Scottish Myths and Legends, narrated by Angus King.

As the story goes, a boy named Jack who lived by the sea with his mother loved to go walking on the beach. One morning, while he is out walking, he is approached by Death. Death tells Jack that he is looking for Jack’s mother, and wonders if he could be so kind as to give him directions to their cottage.

Jack, horrified at the prospect of losing his mother, and doing what you might hope any good son would do, instead leaps at Death, tackles…