--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's hard for me to get interested in…" description: "\"It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore death, which is what American marketing culture would like to do: pretend that death doesn't ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg" --- # It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore… ![“It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore death, which is what American marketing culture would like to do: pretend that death doesn't exist, that you can buy immortality; just buy these products, and you'll be forever young and happy.” quote by Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg) > “It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore death, which is what American marketing culture would like to do: pretend that death doesn't exist, that you can buy immortality; just buy these products, and you'll be forever young and happy.” [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Critiques consumer culture's denial of mortality, warning against false promises of eternal youth. **In simple terms:** Calls out denial of death in marketing. Key Takeaway Beware false promises of immortality. Themes mortality consumerism truth Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - advertising - health products - life philosophy Key Concepts existential awareness marketing ethics Questions to Reflect On - How does confronting death change choices? - What ethical duties do marketers have? A Different Perspective People may still buy despite awareness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) [Buy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buy/) [Buy Immortality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buy-immortality-3827417/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-american-2401183/) [Death Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-doesn/) [Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exist/) [Forever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forever/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Ignore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignore/) [Ignore Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignore-death-1989621/) [Immortality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immortality/) [Interested](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interested/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Marketing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marketing/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Pretend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretend/) [Pretend Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretend-death-4099248/) [Products](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/products/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Which](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/which/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) ## Related quotes > [“A man with money is no match against a man on a mission. After all, money can’t buy you immortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziad-k-abdelnour/a-man-with-money-is-no-match-against-a-man-on-a-mission-after-all/) [Ziad K. Abdelnour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziad-k-abdelnour/) > [Weapons are the source of death. In every American movie, there are machine guns, whatever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-noe/weapons-are-the-source-of-death-in-every-american-movie-there-are/) [Gaspar Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-noe/) > [Why do people want to pretend that death is sleep? It isn't. It isn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/why-do-people-want-to-pretend-that-death-is-sleep-it-isn-t-it-isn-t/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I don't think I could write a good play if I was setting out to write about the death of the American middle class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-karam/i-don-t-think-i-could-write-a-good-play-if-i-was-setting-out-to-write/) [Stephen Karam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-karam/) > [“Stupid. Why do people want to pretend that death is sleep? It isn’t. It isn’t”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/stupid-why-do-people-want-to-pretend-that-death-is-sleep-it-isn-t-it/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“People ignore death but death never ignores people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kareem-elmassry/people-ignore-death-but-death-never-ignores-people/) [Kareem Elmassry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kareem-elmassry/) > [Ignore death up to the last moment; then, when it can't be ignored any longer, have yourself squirted full of morphia and shuffle off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/ignore-death-up-to-the-last-moment-then-when-it-can-t-be-ignored-any/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [To ignore death and to be afraid of it is dumb because everyone is going to face it at some point. If you look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-toro/to-ignore-death-and-to-be-afraid-of-it-is-dumb-because-everyone-is/) [Ray Toro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-toro/) > [“Yes, she told us we’d see her in everything—the sunbeams, the shadows, the flowers, the rain. She said death doesn’t kill us, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittainy-c-cherry/yes-she-told-us-we-d-see-her-in-everything-the-sunbeams-the-shadows/) [Brittainy C. Cherry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittainy-c-cherry/) > [All diseases have their cure; only death doesn't have it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/all-diseases-have-their-cure-only-death-doesn-t-have-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“...it is a glory and a privilege to love what Death doesn't touch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/it-is-a-glory-and-a-privilege-to-love-what-death-doesn-t-touch/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [“Death doesn't ever look at shoulda, though, does it? Death looks at nothing. It just does what it's meant to do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meissner/death-doesn-t-ever-look-at-shoulda-though-does-it-death-looks-at/) [Susan Meissner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meissner/) > [“Death doesn’t always want your eternal sleep. Sometimes Death just wants your eternity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacquelynn-gagne/death-doesn-t-always-want-your-eternal-sleep-sometimes-death-just/) [Jacquelynn Gagne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacquelynn-gagne/) > [It is hard to have patience with people who say ''There is no death'' or ''Death doesn't matter'.' There is death. And whatever is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-hard-to-have-patience-with-people-who-say-there-is-no-death-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But death doesn't scare me. To know exactly when I might expect it, up close and in my face, would actually be a comfort.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/but-death-doesn-t-scare-me-to-know-exactly-when-i-might-expect-it-up/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) ## More by Alan Ball > [The important thing is that he shook hands with us over the phone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-important-thing-is-that-he-shook-hands-with-us-over-the-phone/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“Well did you call the hypothetical hardware store and buy a theoretical chainsaw?-- Pam to Jessica, True Blood”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/well-did-you-call-the-hypothetical-hardware-store-and-buy-a/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“Pam: I don't know what it is about me that makes people think I want to hear their problems. Maybe I smile too much.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/pam-i-don-t-know-what-it-is-about-me-that-makes-people-think-i-want/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [Television viewing has become for me a completely different experience, because I don't watch shows on a weekly basis. I wait until the DVD…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/television-viewing-has-become-for-me-a-completely-different/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I don't really know what it is about vampires that makes them such a powerful symbol, metaphor, whatever in people's consciousness. But I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-don-t-really-know-what-it-is-about-vampires-that-makes-them-such-a/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I am a little suspicious of industry paradigms. I feel like so many movies and TV shows feel so familiar because of over-reliance on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-am-a-little-suspicious-of-industry-paradigms-i-feel-like-so-many/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-had-always-heard-your-entire-life-flashes-in-front-of-your-eyes-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'm 53. I don't care about high school students. I find them irritating and uninformed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-m-53-i-don-t-care-about-high-school-students-i-find-them-irritating/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [Beauty is in the strangest places. A piece of garbage floating in the wind. And that beauty exists in America. It exists everywhere. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/beauty-is-in-the-strangest-places-a-piece-of-garbage-floating-in-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [The difference between film and TV is the pace. You don't have the leisure of time in television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-difference-between-film-and-tv-is-the-pace-you-don-t-have-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > ['Six Feet Under' was about repressing our deepest, most primal impulses, and 'True Blood' is about giving full sway to them all the time.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/six-feet-under-was-about-repressing-our-deepest-most-primal-impulses/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'd seen 'Interview with A Vampire' and saw Dracula movies growing up, but I never thought, 'I love vampires; I have to do a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-d-seen-interview-with-a-vampire-and-saw-dracula-movies-growing-up/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“The idea of celibate vampires is ridiculous. To me, vampires are sex. I don't get a vampire story about abstinence. I don't care about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-idea-of-celibate-vampires-is-ridiculous-to-me-vampires-are-sex-i/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [As a writer, it's fun to create. And once you get into a long-running show with very established characters and a very established tone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/as-a-writer-it-s-fun-to-create-and-once-you-get-into-a-long-running/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'm from the South, so while I personally find it impossible to live there, I still have a fondness for it as a geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-m-from-the-south-so-while-i-personally-find-it-impossible-to-live/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) [Explore all 91 Alan Ball quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) [Browse all 7,717 American quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore death, which is what American marketing culture would like to do: pretend that death doesn't exist, that you can buy immortality; just buy these products, and you'll be forever young and happy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alan Ball" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-stories-that-ignore-death-which/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-stories-that-ignore-death-which/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/752/alan-ball-7404_american_it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-st_2086095.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's hard for me to get interested in stories that ignore death, which is what American marketing culture…” — Alan Ball", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alan Ball", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's hard for me to get...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-stories-that-ignore-death-which/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/it-s-hard-for-me-to-get-interested-in-stories-that-ignore-death-which/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```