And it was different because she was alive, when she had so nearly been dead.

[shootingstar]

"And it was different because she no longer felt she was there simply to serve the dreams of other people. She no longer felt like she had to find sole fulfilment as some imaginary perfect daughter or sister or partner or wife or mother or employee or anything other than a human being, orbiting her own purpose, and answerable to herself.
And it was different because she was alive, when she had so nearly been dead."
(The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, episode The Vulcano)

What do you take the word "when" to mean in this context? Is its meaning temporal, causal, contrastive, concessive or anything else? What do you think?

 

[emsr2d2]

You could replace it with "considering".

 

[shootingstar]

You could replace it with "considering".

OK. You are replacing the conjunction "when" with the conjunction (resp. conjunctional expression) "considering", respectively with "considering that". Is the meaning of "considering", respectively "considering that" temporal, conditional, adversative or anything else in this context? What do you think?

 

[jutfrank]

It's contrastive—being alive versus being dead.