--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: His legs withered. His stomach stretched…" description: "\"“His legs withered. His stomach stretched taut as a drum. His skin erupted in watery pustules: whichever way he turned was agony. Phosphorescent centip..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/449/bruce-chatwin-11797_illness_his-legs-withered-his-stomach-stretched_799411.jpg" --- # His legs withered. His stomach stretched taut as a drum… ![“His legs withered. His stomach stretched taut as a drum. His skin erupted in watery pustules: whichever way he turned was agony. Phosphorescent centipedes crawled over him at night; and the vultures spattered him with ammoniac droppings, shuffling for position along the wall, and flexing their…” quote by Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/449/bruce-chatwin-11797_illness_his-legs-withered-his-stomach-stretched_799411.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/449/bruce-chatwin-11797_illness_his-legs-withered-his-stomach-stretched_799411.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/449/bruce-chatwin-11797_illness_his-legs-withered-his-stomach-stretched_799411.jpg) > ““His legs withered. His stomach stretched taut as a drum. His skin erupted in watery pustules: whichever way he turned was agony. Phosphorescent centipedes crawled over him at night; and the vultures spattered him with ammoniac droppings, shuffling for position along the wall, and flexing their pinions with the noise of tearing silk.”” [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid, harrowing description of physical decay and relentless suffering, emphasizing the grotesque details of a dying body. **In simple terms:** Extreme physical decline and relentless pain. Key Takeaway Recognize and address suffering early. Themes mortality pain body decay Mood grim intense Type descriptive literary When to use this quote - medical diagnosis - war zones - extreme illness Key Concepts human fragility suffering visual imagery Questions to Reflect On - What does this vivid portrayal reveal about human resilience? - How does confronting such imagery affect empathy? A Different Perspective The graphic detail may overwhelm or desensitize readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness/) [Vultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vultures/) ## Related quotes > [And when you look along the way we've come, there are spirals of vultures wheeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/and-when-you-look-along-the-way-we-ve-come-there-are-spirals-of/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [Honey, why do you cry? Didnt anyone tell you people are just monsters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/broken-soul/honey-why-do-you-cry-didnt-anyone-tell-you-people-are-just-monsters/) [Broken Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/broken-soul/) > [“It was funny, Richard Sharpe thought, that there were no vultures in England.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-cornwell/it-was-funny-richard-sharpe-thought-that-there-were-no-vultures-in/) [Bernard Cornwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-cornwell/) > [ “Let the enemy try conclusions with me and the vultures shall gorge themselves with his flesh and the ants shall fatten on his blood. \[137\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-t-plaatje/let-the-enemy-try-conclusions-with-me-and-the-vultures-shall-gorge/) [Sol T. Plaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-t-plaatje/) > [Doctinaires are the vultures of principle. They feed upon principle after it is dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lloyd-george/doctinaires-are-the-vultures-of-principle-they-feed-upon-principle/) [David Lloyd George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lloyd-george/) > [“The others moved in like a wake of vultures, ready to devour their prey. she had seen it on television once. 'Scavengers,' Tatinek called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-c-malby/the-others-moved-in-like-a-wake-of-vultures-ready-to-devour-their/) [F.C. Malby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-c-malby/) > [There's vultures out here. You need to listen and learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tionne-watkins/there-s-vultures-out-here-you-need-to-listen-and-learn/) [Tionne Watkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tionne-watkins/) > [Civilization - a heap of rubble scavenged by scrawny English Lit. vultures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-muggeridge/civilization-a-heap-of-rubble-scavenged-by-scrawny-english-lit/) [Malcolm Muggeridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-muggeridge/) > […but there they lay, sprawled across the field, craved far more by the vultures than by wives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/but-there-they-lay-sprawled-across-the-field-craved-far-more-by-the/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [“Vultures often seem exceptionally kind and warm at first. They want to fix you and absorb your problems. They are fascinated by your struggles.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peace/vultures-often-seem-exceptionally-kind-and-warm-at-first-they-want-to/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peace/) > [I may look happy, but honestly dear, the only way I'll really smile is if you cut me ear to ear. I see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bring-me-the-horizon/i-may-look-happy-but-honestly-dear-the-only-way-i-ll-really-smile-is/) [Bring Me The Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bring-me-the-horizon/) > [“Riches draw friends as corpses draw vultures”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bangambiki-habyarimana/riches-draw-friends-as-corpses-draw-vultures/) [Bangambiki Habyarimana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bangambiki-habyarimana/) > [“When the lion falls the lesser beasts move in: the jackals and the vultures and the feral dogs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/when-the-lion-falls-the-lesser-beasts-move-in-the-jackals-and-the/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Awoke to find three vultures sitting on the fence. Realizing they were a portent of impending death I shot them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-allison/awoke-to-find-three-vultures-sitting-on-the-fence-realizing-they-were/) Bridget Allison > [“Blood is everywhere.. Vultures take shelter beneath the tanks; for the fumed sky is unsafe for their avian flight to prey on the Palestinian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/munia-khan/blood-is-everywhere-vultures-take-shelter-beneath-the-tanks-for-the/) [Munia Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/munia-khan/) ## More by Bruce Chatwin > [Tyranny sets up its own echo-chamber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/tyranny-sets-up-its-own-echo-chamber/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“I think I would be happy in that place I happen not to be, and this question of moving house is the subject of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-think-i-would-be-happy-in-that-place-i-happen-not-to-be-and-this/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [And the formation of man is the most pressing problem facing humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/and-the-formation-of-man-is-the-most-pressing-problem-facing-humanity/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [A Sufi manual, the Kashf-al-Mahjub, says that, towards the end of his journey, the dervish becomes the Way not the wayfarer, i.e. a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/a-sufi-manual-the-kashf-al-mahjub-says-that-towards-the-end-of-his/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [I pictured a low timber house with a shingled roof, caulked against storms, with blazing log fires inside and the walls lined with all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-pictured-a-low-timber-house-with-a-shingled-roof-caulked-against/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“One year, he went to Paris for the week-end: but that completely upset his equilibrium.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/one-year-he-went-to-paris-for-the-week-end-but-that-completely-upset/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [It's an old sailor's idea that every ship has a rope with one end made fast to her bows and the other held by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/it-s-an-old-sailor-s-idea-that-every-ship-has-a-rope-with-one-end/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“ Fino a quando, Signore, fino a quando? ... "Finché non siano devastate le città...". I Profeti confidavano in un Giorno della Restaurazione, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/fino-a-quando-signore-fino-a-quando-finch-non-siano-devastate-le-citt/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [I climbed a path and from the top looked up-stream towards Chile. I could see the river, glinting and sliding through the bone-white cliffs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-climbed-a-path-and-from-the-top-looked-up-stream-towards-chile-i/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“The real home of man is not his house but the road. Life itself is a travel that has to be done by foot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/the-real-home-of-man-is-not-his-house-but-the-road-life-itself-is-a/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“What am I doing here? Rimbaud writing home from Ethiopia”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/what-am-i-doing-here-rimbaud-writing-home-from-ethiopia/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > ['I will go to France, to Yugoslavia, to China, and continue my profession.' 'As sanitary engineer?' 'No, Monsieur. As adventurer. I will see all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-will-go-to-france-to-yugoslavia-to-china-and-continue-my-profession/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [Walking is a virtue, tourism is a deadly sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/walking-is-a-virtue-tourism-is-a-deadly-sin/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [Richard Lee calculated that a Bushman child will be carried a distance of 4,900 miles before he begins to walk on his own. Since,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/richard-lee-calculated-that-a-bushman-child-will-be-carried-a/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) > [“Gradually the idea for a book began to take shape. It was to be a wildly ambitious and intolerant work, a kind of 'Anatomy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/gradually-the-idea-for-a-book-began-to-take-shape-it-was-to-be-a/) [Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) [Explore all 53 Bruce Chatwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/) ## More Illness quotes > [Telling a story of illness, one pulls a thread through a narrow opening flanked on one side by shame and the other by trivia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/telling-a-story-of-illness-one-pulls-a-thread-through-a-narrow/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [Death is in truth an illness from which we recover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/death-is-in-truth-an-illness-from-which-we-recover/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [This tendency to avoid problems and the emotional suffering inherent in them is the primary basis of all human mental illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-swindoll/this-tendency-to-avoid-problems-and-the-emotional-suffering-inherent/) [Charles R. Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-swindoll/) > [I think we need to talk about mental illness a lot more. People complain about tax dollars and say we don't have the money.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/i-think-we-need-to-talk-about-mental-illness-a-lot-more-people/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [I've always been interested in medicine and was pleased when my brother became a doctor. But after thinking seriously about that field, I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-medicine-and-was-pleased-when-my/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [“Mental illness is not something you misunderstand in this era. Get educated because bias is no different than racism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/mental-illness-is-not-something-you-misunderstand-in-this-era-get/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) > [For it is an absurdity to call a country civilized in which a decent and industrious man, laboriously mastering a trade which is valuble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/for-it-is-an-absurdity-to-call-a-country-civilized-in-which-a-decent/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-behrman/my-illness-is-one-often-characterized-by-dramatic-overspending-in-my/) [Andy Behrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-behrman/) > [Literature + Illness = Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-bola-o/literature-illness-illness/) [Roberto Bolano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-bola-o/) > [Having an eating disorder doesn't show ‘strength.’ Strength is when are able to overcome your demons after being sick and tired for so long.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/having-an-eating-disorder-doesn-t-show-strength-strength-is-when-are/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [Sometimes, I get afraid it has defined me, that sense of grief, loss and illness. But actually, it is about allowing myself to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-i-get-afraid-it-has-defined-me-that-sense-of-grief-loss-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's more common than not that bipolar illness will start in the teens. One of the reasons I spend a lot of time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/it-s-more-common-than-not-that-bipolar-illness-will-start-in-the/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [You cannot drive a system that's going to be aiming at preventing illness if everyone is not in it. The whole gaming of health…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-oz/you-cannot-drive-a-system-that-s-going-to-be-aiming-at-preventing/) [Mehmet Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-oz/) > [There are people with much bigger profiles than mine who are talking about mental illness. 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