What if somebody made you an offer for your soul?

[DetlefK]

The following hypothetical scenario:

There's a company/organization.
You go there. A nice and modern office-building.
They run some psychological tests on you to find out if you are a good person.
Then they invite you for a one-on-one talk in one of their offices.
Once you are inside, a company-representative congratulates you for being a good person.
You expect that he wants to sell you something.
And then he offers you to buy your soul for $1000 or $10,000 or $100,000 or $1,000,000 or whatever.

No additional legalese attached. No catch. Just this deal: You get money after signing a piece of paper (in ink, of course) that says that your soul is now owned by that company and you waive any legal rights to back out of this deal after receiving the full sum.



Yes, this was on "Simpsons", but what if this wasn't two children playing? What if a business-guy in suit and tie offered you money for your soul, complete with all the stuff that goes with deals, with an office and paperwork and so on?

Would you take the deal?




(Actually, that would make a great movie. The life of a man falls apart under psychological stress as he struggles to find out whether he actually sold his soul to Satan or whether it was just an elaborate prank.)

[TxDemChem]

1. I'm with you. That would be an awesome movie.

[CrispyQ]

2. Selling your soul to Satan or selling it to a corporation is pretty much the same thing.

I don't believe in a soul, so sure, I'd sell it for as much as I could get for it.

[DetlefK]

3. You would take the million without thinking why somebody would buy something non-existent? :D

Remember: In this scenario the person buying your soul appears to be an average, boring, business-man, not some cultist, witch or charismatic alpha-male.

[CrispyQ]

4. Oh, I would need more than a million.

[DetlefK]

5. "I'm sorry, but your soul is only worth 1 million, tops."

And later, one of your friends tells you a crazy story about a company that offered him 2 millions for his soul...

[CrispyQ]

8. No surprise there. Men always get paid more than women.

[Neoma]

6. Well that really depends doesn't it?

He could mean that he wants to do anything he wants to you, thus owning you because you were foolish enough to think it was a prank.

[Ron Obvious]

7. Of course I'd take the deal!

And I read about this long before it might have appeared on a Simpsons episode. It might have been a G.K Chesterton short story. Someone with a pro-religious bias anyhow, with the person selling their soul deeply regretting the deal and getting increasingly paranoid about it.

It probably wasn't Chesterton, but it was someone like that who enjoyed showing up those damn arrogant atheists anyway. Damn, who was it?

[Goblinmonger]

21. Goethe?

[Ron Obvious]

22. Goethe...

Haha, no my memory may be feeble these days but I haven't forgotten Faust yet.

No, it was a short story. It might have been one of Guareschi's Don Camillo stories.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

9. what soul?

[libodem]

10. I'd be right in line

Behind Eric Cantor, the AntiChrist.

[AtheistCrusader]

11. Depends on how they legally define 'soul' in the sales bill/contract.

Soul is often interchangeably used for 'life'.

If it was defined in maritime terms "Titanic sunk, over 2000 souls on board" I would not accept the offer.
If it was defined as a metaphysical essence-thing as referred to in the bible, yeah, a million would be nice. And if it turned out that I could have gotten 2 million if I'd waited, I would not be bitter. A million for something that doesn't exist is quite enough of a joke to begin with.

[cynatnite]

12. I'd have to read the fine print first. n/t

[LostOne4Ever]

13. Sure I would take the deal

I would hand over the bottoms of my shoes right then and there for $1,000,000.

Or are you talking about that spiritual thing some people believe in? Sorry I can't sell something that does not exist.

[OriginalGeek]

27. Just because it doesn't exist

doesn't mean you can't take money from the dupe that thinks it does.

[dimbear]

14. I don't think you can make a binding contract to sell your soul in the US. It would be

slavery, unconstitutional. You can't sell yourself into slavery, matter of fact.

[Curmudgeoness]

15. I don't think I would.

Not sure though. It isn't the reason you think though. But I have to say that I am quite the skeptic, and it would be my opinion that there is always a "catch". I always run away from anything that says "free, no catch". And to offer to purchase my soul, which I do not believe exists, is the same as saying that I am getting something for nothing.

They would probably inundate me with a barrage of spam and unsolicited phone calls for the rest of my life and drive me insane. Or want me to subject myself to hundreds of psychological tests until I die. There would be something.

[muriel_volestrangler]

16. I'd start looking for the hidden cameras

Candid Camera never goes out of style.

Now, if it were cash, and I saw it in front of me before I had to sign, I probably would. And then see if the TV company dared to try and stop me taking it.

[ScottLand]

17. I'll sell mine for $500. How would you know you aren't buying a soul that has already been sold?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

18. My soul has flood damage. Sucker!

[Arugula Latte]

26. The sole of my soul is soiled, but it can be cleaned.

[Zoeisright]

19. You bet.

Even if there was such a thing as a "soul", which science and medicine have been completely unable to find, there's no way to prove I didn't sell it.

[mr blur]

20. I'll take the money, thanks!

Someone wants to buy something that doesn't exist? Fine.

[BlueJazz]

23. Damn...James Brown's soul would have been worth like 50 Million !

[Apophis]

24. I'd sell my soul for a doughnut.

But since we don't have souls, this hypothetical situation is moot.

[LiberalAndProud]

25. Most people I know lease on an hourly basis.

The going rate is around $9.00/hr. I have noticed that minimum wage won't do.