Faced with cancer, Mrs. Wilson confronts her impending death. She finds new strength fight her prognosis with a book, The Will to Live, by the philosopher Schopenhauer.

In a future where technology has advanced to the point where humans can undergo "optimization" to rid themselves of emotions and increase their mental functions, one man decides to cling to his humanity in an effort to atone for his sins and appreciate the beauty of being human.

A mathematic equation is developed that has the ability to solve the issues in human's lives, but those who can use the equation to help others must first learn to deal with their own lives.

Eventually it came to pass that no one ever had to die, unless they ran out of money. Then, unless they were so horrible that society had to dispose of them. Then, unless wanted to or could be talked into it. Then, no one would die so long as they had just one person who loved them.

A professor tries to convey to his students the magnitude of the most perfectly crafted poem ever written in the English language: “Lycidas.”

In this metafiction, the many lives of an unnamed man are scrutinized as he passes through millennia.

A man considers the possibility of multiple realities, and creates possible scenarios for how his life could have turned out; including one where he is a famous football player, another where he's a stay-at-home dad caring for a daughter who has Down Syndrome, and another where she doesn't.

A story with an unconventional structure that asks "What is your number one priority?"

A pessimistic father's belief that the world is actively against him and his family displaces his frustration on his wife and son. His opinion may prove to be correct after his child succumbs to a sudden illness.

Professor gives a talk about the human appetite for death