Mortality, Life, and Meaning Theme Analysis

They Both Die at the End plunges the reader into a world that, in a variety of ways, doesn’t seem that much different from the reader’s world—except when it comes to dying. In the novel, individuals who are going to die in the next 24 hours (Deckers) receive calls from an organization called Death-Cast between midnight and three in the morning, informing them of this fact so that they can make the most of their last day alive (their End Day). The novel centers on two teenage boys, Mateo and Rufus, who both receive calls on the same September day and who connect with each other on the social media app Last Friend. Through its very premise, They Both Die at the End questions how people can and should deal with their mortality—but the novel overwhelmingly suggests that focusing entirely on death isn’t especially useful. Rather, it’s healthier and more fulfilling to recognize the simple fact that all humans are mortal as a reason to make the most out of one’s life, no matter how short it might be.

Mateo lives much of his life online, playing video games and watching livestream videos on a blog called CountDowners, where Deckers can livestream their End Day for viewers at home. Though Mateo finds CountDowners fulfilling in its own way and impossible not to watch, he begins to change his thinking when he receives his call from Death-Cast. Prior to the call, Mateo feels as though spending time watching CountDowners is normal and even beneficial. But receiving the call forces Mateo to reckon with the fact that, practically speaking, he’s done nothing but hang out on CountDowners for much of his life—and this, he insists, isn’t much of a life at all. Further, CountDowners forces Mateo to think constantly about death rather than encouraging him to focus on the act of living. Rufus is, in many ways, the exact opposite of Mateo: though Rufus tragically lost his parents and older sister a few months before the novel begins, he’s made the best of his foster care situation. He and his fellow housemates and friends, Tagoe, Malcolm, and Aimee—the “Plutos”—spend every waking minute together, soaking up life and time with one another. Rufus has had several romantic relationships, including with Aimee. Though he’s active on Instagram, he’s dismissive of platforms like CountDowners; in his mind, it’s not useful to focus so much on the act of dying.

As Mateo and Rufus meet, get to know each other, and go through their shared End Day together, they discover that this simple dichotomy between focusing on living and focusing on dying isn’t as clear-cut as they’d like to think. Though the goal of their day is to get as much life experience as they can, the possibility of death lurks around every corner—it’s a risk to so much as step out of the shower, as one might slip in a puddle and die. Even as they undergo the life-altering experiences of confronting their pasts, falling in love, and even surviving a suicide bombing, they can never escape the fear of dying that colors every experience.

Alongside this fear, however, arises a thought that the novel implies is far more important: the understanding that life, in all its forms, is beautiful. Mateo becomes acutely aware of this as he spends time with Penny, his best friend Lidia’s one-year-old daughter. Penny, who’s at the very beginning of her life, represents innocence and a hope for the future—and as a baby, she has no concept of death. Mateo recognizes that of all people, Penny is truly living: she demands the things she wants, she snuggles the people she loves, and she has her whole life ahead of her even if she can’t yet conceptualize the future. Though Mateo doesn’t have long to live when he plays with Penny, he nevertheless thinks that she has the right idea: it’s important to live life to the fullest and do all the things he wants to do, even if—and especially if—things could end in an instant. As an aspiring photographer, Rufus comes to the same conclusions but through a slightly different avenue. He vows to document his last day on Instagram, and to do so in color; all his Instagram photos prior to his End Day have been in black and white. The simple act of taking photos forces Rufus to look for beauty and tender moments throughout the day, whether that means taking a photo of someone riding away on his beloved bike (which he won’t need anymore) or taking a picture of Mateo resting on the subway, holding a building he made out of Legos.

Taking these lessons to heart, Mateo and Rufus spend the day crisscrossing New York City, taking emotional (if not physical) risks by asking for forgiveness from their loved ones, falling in love with each other, and ultimately saying goodbye to everyone they can. By drawing on the lessons they learn from Penny and from Rufus’s photography, they make the active choice to focus on creating meaningful memories for the people they love, and on giving each other the experience of being in love, if only for a short time. While Death-Cast, of course, doesn’t exist in the reader’s world, the novel nevertheless asks readers to take what Rufus and Mateo learn to heart. Ultimately, the story suggests that making connections and finding beauty in the world whenever possible are more important pursuits than fearing death.