--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Many people live and die without ever…" description: "\"“Many people live and die without ever confronting themselves in the darkness.”\" — Carmen Maria Machado" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg" --- # Many people live and die without ever confronting… ![“Many people live and die without ever confronting themselves in the darkness.” quote by Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg) > ““Many people live and die without ever confronting themselves in the darkness.”” [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Many avoid deep self‑examination, living superficially and missing personal growth. **In simple terms:** People often ignore inner darkness. Key Takeaway Face your inner shadows for true insight. Themes self‑reflection psychology existence darkness growth Mood reflective somber Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - creative writing - personal journaling - mindfulness practice Key Concepts introspection existentialism mental health Questions to Reflect On - What fears arise when you look inward? - How can confronting darkness improve relationships? A Different Perspective Confronting darkness can be painful and destabilizing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Confronting Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confronting-darkness-5607997/) [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Die Confronting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/die-confronting-5607998/) [Live and die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-and-die/) [Live Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-die/) [People Live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-live/) ## Related quotes > [Most people live and die with their music still unplayed. 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I walk around happy as hell because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-garrett/you-just-have-to-love-yourself-and-live-and-die-with-the-passion-of/) [Sean Garrett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-garrett/) > [If you don not live for something ,you will die for nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin/if-you-don-not-live-for-something-you-will-die-for-nothing/) [Kevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin/) > [Learn to live well, that thou may'st die so too; To live and die is all we have to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denham/learn-to-live-well-that-thou-may-st-die-so-too-to-live-and-die-is-all/) [John Denham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denham/) > [Live and die your own way, unnoticed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ding-ling/live-and-die-your-own-way-unnoticed/) [Ding Ling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ding-ling/) > [“Most people live and die with their music still unplayed, they never dare to try. But I tell you, If music be the food…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-people-live-and-die-with-their-music-still-unplayed-they-never/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Oh let me live my own! and die so too! ("To live and die is all I have to do:") Maintain a poet's dignity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/oh-let-me-live-my-own-and-die-so-too-to-live-and-die-is-all-i-have-to/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [“It is the heart which dictates, which rules, which lets us live and die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/it-is-the-heart-which-dictates-which-rules-which-lets-us-live-and-die/) [F. Sionil José](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/) > [I never, nor will I, put another person down to feel better about myself. I will live and die by what I do, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-mencia/i-never-nor-will-i-put-another-person-down-to-feel-better-about/) [Carlos Mencia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-mencia/) > [Once more into the fray. Into the last good fight I'll ever know. Live and die on this day. Live and die on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-grey/once-more-into-the-fray-into-the-last-good-fight-i-ll-ever-know-live/) [The Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-grey/) > [If you die of cancer with only openness and softness in your heart, you will live and die integrating your self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-de-ruiter/if-you-die-of-cancer-with-only-openness-and-softness-in-your-heart/) [John de Ruiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-de-ruiter/) > [Passion, that thing of beauty, that flowering without roots, has to be born, live and die without reason.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgette-leblanc/passion-that-thing-of-beauty-that-flowering-without-roots-has-to-be/) [Georgette Leblanc](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgette-leblanc/) > [We live and die; Christ died and lived!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-live-and-die-christ-died-and-lived/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Carmen Maria Machado > [“She was a stranger because something essential was shielded, released in tiny bursts until it became a flood---a flood of what I realized I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/she-was-a-stranger-because-something-essential-was-shielded-released/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“Beyond the table, there is an altar, with candles lit for Billie Holiday and Willa Carter and Hypatia and Patsy Cline. Next to it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/beyond-the-table-there-is-an-altar-with-candles-lit-for-billie/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“What I say: “Why did you leave her with me?” What I want to say: “This almost broke me, but it didn’t. It made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/what-i-say-why-did-you-leave-her-with-me-what-i-want-to-say-this/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“And there was nothing in my eyes. Or even worse -- nothingness. Not the presence of a thing but the presence of a non-thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/and-there-was-nothing-in-my-eyes-or-even-worse-nothingness-not-the/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“You never live with a woman, you live inside of her, I overheard my father say to my brother once, and it was, indeed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/you-never-live-with-a-woman-you-live-inside-of-her-i-overheard-my/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“I once heard a story about a girl who requested something so vile from her paramour that he told her family and they had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/i-once-heard-a-story-about-a-girl-who-requested-something-so-vile/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“That night, I wash myself. The silky suds between my legs are the color and scent of rust, but I am newer than I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/that-night-i-wash-myself-the-silky-suds-between-my-legs-are-the-color/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“A feeling settles over me—a one-beer-deep feeling, a no-more-skittering-feet-after-the-trap-snaps feeling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/a-feeling-settles-over-me-a-one-beer-deep-feeling-a-no-more/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“Will I ever be done, transformed in the past tense, or will I always be transforming, better and better until I die?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/will-i-ever-be-done-transformed-in-the-past-tense-or-will-i-always-be/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“She’s like dough, how the give of it beneath kneading hands disguises its sturdiness, its potential.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/she-s-like-dough-how-the-give-of-it-beneath-kneading-hands-disguises/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“Mara, remember how you kicked sand into that neighbor child’s eyes? I yelled at you and made you apologize in your best dress, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/mara-remember-how-you-kicked-sand-into-that-neighbor-child-s-eyes-i/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“(If you read this story out loud, please use the following voices: ME: as a child, high-pitched, forgettable; as a woman, the same. THE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/if-you-read-this-story-out-loud-please-use-the-following-voices-me-as/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“When you think about it, stories have this way of running together like raindrops in a pond. Each is borne from the clouds separate,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/when-you-think-about-it-stories-have-this-way-of-running-together/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“I have always been a teller of stories. When I was a young girl, my mother carried me out of a grocery store as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/i-have-always-been-a-teller-of-stories-when-i-was-a-young-girl-my/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) > [“I was a creature so small, trapped in some crevice of an indifferent universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/i-was-a-creature-so-small-trapped-in-some-crevice-of-an-indifferent/) [Carmen Maria Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) [Explore all 22 Carmen Maria Machado quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/) ## More Darkness quotes > [“Narrative cannot sustain formlessness any more than light can sustain darkness - it is the antithesis of formlessness, and so it can never truly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/narrative-cannot-sustain-formlessness-any-more-than-light-can-sustain/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [“Wait here, wait here!" he cried and jumped up and began to run for help toward a cluster of lights he saw in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/wait-here-wait-here-he-cried-and-jumped-up-and-began-to-run-for-help/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Clear moments are so short. There is much more darkness. More ocean than terra firma. More shadow than form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-zagajewski/clear-moments-are-so-short-there-is-much-more-darkness-more-ocean/) [Adam Zagajewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-zagajewski/) > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“I promise to respect and protect your aloneness, knowing that everything created must have its period of darkness: child and bulb, poem and personality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/i-promise-to-respect-and-protect-your-aloneness-knowing-that/) [anne morrow lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [The beauty of darkness is how it lets you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-beauty-of-darkness-is-how-it-lets-you-see/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [“Even in darkness your lips taste of sunshine”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/even-in-darkness-your-lips-taste-of-sunshine/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [“Defy me not for gleam can only shine in my existence" said Darkness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/defy-me-not-for-gleam-can-only-shine-in-my-existence-said-darkness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What does he look like? The question was soft- tentative. I knew who he meant. I interlaced my fingers through Rhysand's and squeezed tightly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/what-does-he-look-like-the-question-was-soft-tentative-i-knew-who-he/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [“Life is like coffee, the darker it gets, the more it energizes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankita-singhal/life-is-like-coffee-the-darker-it-gets-the-more-it-energizes/) [Ankita Singhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankita-singhal/) > [Twinking tears in a sea of black. Soft light in a world of darkness. Tiny wishes in a place of dreams. Do you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-gentile/twinking-tears-in-a-sea-of-black-soft-light-in-a-world-of-darkness/) [Nicole Gentile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-gentile/) [Browse all 8,219 Darkness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Many people live and die without ever confronting themselves in the darkness.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carmen Maria Machado" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-confronting-themselves-in-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Darkness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-confronting-themselves-in-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e73/carmen-maria-machado-26278_darkness_many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-co_710880.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Many people live and die without ever confronting themselves in the darkness.” — Carmen Maria Machado", "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": "Carmen Maria Machado", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-maria-machado/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Many people live and die without...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-confronting-themselves-in-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-maria-machado/many-people-live-and-die-without-ever-confronting-themselves-in-the/#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 } } ] } ```