Through traumatic death experiences and their aftermath, Vicious explores the definition of life. In the hospital after their deaths in the lake, Sydney and Serena miraculously begin breathing again, which Schwab notes is “all living is, really” (140). However, while breathing is a physiological sign of life, Schwab explore how living is also more complex than this autonomic process by using different character views, behaviors, and EO abilities to present various views on the definition of life.

In Vicious’s world, one requirement for becoming an EO is a strong will to live. All EOs come back from a death that followed a traumatic experience. Through Eli and Victor’s perspectives, Schwab debates whether this second-life counts as truly being alive. Eli, Victor, and other EOs report feeling different following their deaths, as if something is missing. While their bodies resumed normal functioning after recovering, EOs are fundamentally changed in a way that’s never explicitly defined. Eli believes EOs lose their souls in death, and through his particular religious view, this means EOs are not truly alive because they are missing what makes them human.

The actions and behaviors of other EOs contrast Eli’s view. While Victor, Sydney, and others also feel as if something is missing, their actions and emotions suggest post-death life is different, rather than less.