The meaning of death for every person depends on several factors: age, current knowledge, consciousness, and faith or religion. Age is one of the determining factors because children have a lack of experience and understanding of death. With few exceptions, children face death closer to adulting; that is why their attitude is generally based on parent’s opinion. In contrast, adults understand and accept the mature conception of death as the final of life.
Death and all emotions it causes are traumatic despite any factors, even the age of the person. Surprisingly, understanding the connection between senility and death is perceived relatively easily than death under other circumstances.
While speaking about other factors that influence the attitude to death, it should be noted that, unlike knowledge, consciousness does not always break down by age. The passing of the close relative makes it difficult to lie to the kid about all factual circumstances. That is why children who faced such experiences are more conscious about the question of death. Charlesworth (2016) claimed that death is a particularly complicated topic for young children to understand. In many cases, parents avoid children’s questions about death or mitigate the information using predominantly religious definitions such as heaven or post existence.
In my opinion, most children try to avoid any deep thoughts about death because it profoundly threatens them, and it is similar to being adolescent or adult, when people face death too close. That can happen both to children and adults and traumatize them. Such threats can be caused by the end of a beloved one or by widely covered accidents, like terrorist attacks or the death of a young star.
It is necessary to accept the mature attitude to death, which means that death is the final of life. Probably, it is better to seek some professional assistance during such expertise. In my experience, facing death at an early age is very traumatic and frightening. However, it is tough for a child to understand the true purpose of such an experience. As an adult, I only feel the most substantial necessity in performing a fulfilling life whenever facing death in its various conditions. For me, it has become the mature way to accept death as the final of life.
Reference
Charlesworth, R. (2016). Understanding Child Development (10th ed.). Cengage Learning.