[On being told of Calvin Coolidge's death] How do they know?
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- She expresses disbelief at the finality of death with a dry joke.
- In plain terms
- Death is hard to believe even when announced.
- What can you take from it?
- Death is mysterious and final.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do you process bad news?
- What do you know for sure?
Another view
The joke might seem insensitive in some contexts.
More from Dorothy Parker
It's not the tragedies that kill us; it's the messes.
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