'Whatever crazy sorrow saith, No life that breathes with human breath Has ever truly long'd for death. ''Tis life, whereof our nerves are scant, Oh life, not death, for which we pant; More life, and fuller, that I want.'
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The poem argues that living beings never truly desire death; they seek more life and fulfillment.
- In plain terms
- Life seeks more life, not death.
- What can you take from it?
- Cultivate a desire for richer living rather than escape.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What makes life feel worth living?
- How do we address the desire for death?
Another view
It may ignore legitimate existential suffering.
More from Alfred (Lord) Tennyson
The still voice laugh'd. 'I talk,' said he, 'Not with thy dreams. Suffice it thee Thy pain is a reality.' 'But thou,' said I, 'hast miss'd thy mark, Who sought…
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Permalink to quote #69 'Moreover, something is or seems, That touches me with mystic gleams, Like glimpses of forgotten dreams - 'Of something felt, like something here; Of something…
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