Heart, we will forget him, You and I, tonight! You must forget the warmth he gave, I will forget the light.
Emily DickinsonRead
I wonder if it hurts to live, And if they have to try, And whether, could they choose between, They would not rather die.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the pain and struggles of living versus the desire for death.
Emily Dickinson's quote contemplates the inherent pain associated with life and questions whether those who endure it would choose to live if given the option. It delves into the complex relationship between suffering, existence, and the contemplation of mortality, highlighting the philosophical dilemma of life and death.
Themes
PainLifeDeathExistenceStruggle
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on mental health, this quote might be used to highlight the struggles individuals face.
More from Emily Dickinson
All quotes βI held a jewel in my fingers And went to sleep. The day was warm, and winds were prosy; I said: "'T will keep." I woke and chid my honest fingers,β The gem was gone; And now an amethyst remembrance Is all I own.
Emily DickinsonRead
I'll tell you how the sun rose, a ribbon at a time. The steeples swam in amethyst, The news like squirrels ran. The hills untied their bonnets, The bobolinks begun. Then I said softly to myself, "That must have been the sun!
Emily DickinsonRead
My best Acquaintances are those With Whom I spoke no Word
Emily DickinsonRead
This is the Hour of Lead- Remembered, if outlived, As freezing persons, recollect the Snow- First-Chill-then Stupor- then the letting go---
Emily DickinsonRead
Luck is not chance, it's toil; fortune's expensive smile is earned.
Emily DickinsonRead
Similar quotes
He who learns death unlearns slavery.
Cornel WestRead
If I know a song of Africa, of the giraffe and the African new moon lying on her back, of the plows in the fields and the sweaty faces of the coffee pickers, does Africa know a song of me? Will the air over the plain quiver with a color that I have had on, or the children invent a game in which my name is, or the full moon throw a shadow over the gravel of the drive that was like me, or will the eagles of the Ngong Hills look out for me?
Isak DinesenRead
Freedom is not the permission to do what you like. It's the power to do what you ought.
Os GuinnessRead
If tomorrow were never to come, it would not be worth living today.
Albert EinsteinRead
Modesty is the color of virtue.
DiogenesRead
For the rest, whatever we have got has been by infinite labor, and search, and ranging through every corner of nature; the difference is that instead of dirt and poison, we have rather chosen to fill our hives with honey and wax, thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are sweetness and light.
Jonathan SwiftRead