--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why, it has often occurred to me to ask…" description: "\"“Why, it has often occurred to me to ask myself, do I so frequently choose death, transience, and the grave as subjects for my paintings? One must subm..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d85/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_death_why-it-has-often-occurred-to-me-to-ask-m_1569233.png" --- # Why, it has often occurred to me to ask myself, do I so… ![“Why, it has often occurred to me to ask myself, do I so frequently choose death, transience, and the grave as subjects for my paintings? One must submit oneself many times to death in order some day to attain life everlasting.” quote by Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d85/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_death_why-it-has-often-occurred-to-me-to-ask-m_1569233.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d85/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_death_why-it-has-often-occurred-to-me-to-ask-m_1569233.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d85/caspar-david-friedrich-25116_death_why-it-has-often-occurred-to-me-to-ask-m_1569233.png) > ““Why, it has often occurred to me to ask myself, do I so frequently choose death, transience, and the grave as subjects for my paintings? One must submit oneself many times to death in order some day to attain life everlasting.”” [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The artist contemplates repeatedly confronting mortality in his art to ultimately achieve a sense of eternal life. **In simple terms:** Facing death in art leads to lasting life. Key Takeaway Embrace mortality to find lasting purpose. Themes mortality art spirituality Mood contemplative melancholic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - artist reflection - creative process - personal growth - philosophical inquiry Key Concepts existentialism transcendence Questions to Reflect On - How does confronting death shape your creative output? - Can art transform fear of mortality into meaning? A Different Perspective The focus on death may alienate viewers seeking optimism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choose Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose-death-413987/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death Transience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-transience-5903676/) [Frequently Choose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frequently-choose-5903677/) [Grave Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grave-subjects-3235668/) [Transience Grave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/transience-grave-5903678/) ## Related quotes > [Most of all people respond to a film tackling grave subjects that question and go against the prevailing mood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippe-claudel/most-of-all-people-respond-to-a-film-tackling-grave-subjects-that/) [Philippe Claudel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philippe-claudel/) > [There is no single best kind of death. A good death is one that is "appropriate" for that person. It is a death in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-s-shneidman/there-is-no-single-best-kind-of-death-a-good-death-is-one-that-is/) [Edwin S. Shneidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-s-shneidman/) > [“Socrates replied: One thing to me is certain, Antiphon; you have conceived so vivid an idea of my life of misery that for yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophon/socrates-replied-one-thing-to-me-is-certain-antiphon-you-have/) [Xenophon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophon/) > [I feel at various times in my life that I've been at a point where I had to choose between a death sentence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-feel-at-various-times-in-my-life-that-i-ve-been-at-a-point-where-i-2/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [The right to choose death when life no longer holds meaning is not only the next liberation but the last human right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/the-right-to-choose-death-when-life-no-longer-holds-meaning-is-not/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [The things a man has to have are hope and confidence in himself against odds... And he must be ready to choose death before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-gable/the-things-a-man-has-to-have-are-hope-and-confidence-in-himself-2/) [Clark Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-gable/) > [“And where, I ask you, can a man escape to, when he hasn’t enough madness left inside him? The truth is an endless death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/and-where-i-ask-you-can-a-man-escape-to-when-he-hasn-t-enough-madness/) [Louis-Ferdinand Céline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [“The worst part is wondering how you’ll find the strength tomorrow to go on doing what you did today and have been doing for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-ferdinand-celine/the-worst-part-is-wondering-how-you-ll-find-the-strength-tomorrow-to/) [Louis-Ferdinand Celine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-ferdinand-celine/) > [What an extraordinary time to be alive. We're the first people on our planet to have real choice: we can continue killing each other,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-moore-lapp/what-an-extraordinary-time-to-be-alive-we-re-the-first-people-on-our/) [Frances Moore Lappé](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-moore-lapp/) > [“The clerk tripped on the carpet, hit a window and went through, carrying with him a vase which had been on the sill. His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-aylett/the-clerk-tripped-on-the-carpet-hit-a-window-and-went-through/) [Steve Aylett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-aylett/) > [I feel at various times in my life that I've been at a point where I had to choose between a death sentence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-feel-at-various-times-in-my-life-that-i-ve-been-at-a-point-where-i/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [Just as I shall select my ship when I am about to go on a voyage, or my house when I propose to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-as-i-shall-select-my-ship-when-i-am-about-to-go-on-a-voyage-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“My name is Samaranth,” said the great red beast, “and all those you see around you declined my invitation, opting instead to help themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-owen/my-name-is-samaranth-said-the-great-red-beast-and-all-those-you-see/) [James A. Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-owen/) > [Kira: “Why did Sei choose death? Was it simply to end his pain? Or…No matter what shape he was in or how crazy it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fuyumi-soryo/kira-why-did-sei-choose-death-was-it-simply-to-end-his-pain-or-no/) [Fuyumi Soryo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fuyumi-soryo/) > [I myself and my wife - in order to escape the disgrace of deposition or capitulation - choose death. It is our wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/i-myself-and-my-wife-in-order-to-escape-the-disgrace-of-deposition-or/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) ## More by Caspar David Friedrich > [God is everywhere, in the smallest grain of sand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/god-is-everywhere-in-the-smallest-grain-of-sand/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [“I must stay alone and know that I am alone to contemplate and feel nature in full; I have to surrender myself to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-must-stay-alone-and-know-that-i-am-alone-to-contemplate-and-feel/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The painter should paint not only what he has in front of him, but also what he sees inside himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-painter-should-paint-not-only-what-he-has-in-front-of-him-but/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [If he sees nothing within, then he should stop painting what is in front of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/if-he-sees-nothing-within-then-he-should-stop-painting-what-is-in/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I have to stay alone in order to fully contemplate and feel nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-have-to-stay-alone-in-order-to-fully-contemplate-and-feel-nature/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I am not so weak as to submit to the demands of the age when they go against my convictions. I spin a cocoon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-am-not-so-weak-as-to-submit-to-the-demands-of-the-age-when-they-go/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [Close your bodily eye, that you may see your picture first with the eye of the spirit. Then bring to light what you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/close-your-bodily-eye-that-you-may-see-your-picture-first-with-the/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The feelings of another person should never be imposed upon us as a law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-feelings-of-another-person-should-never-be-imposed-upon-us-as-a/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [What the newer landscape artists see in a circle of a hundred degrees in Nature they press together unmercifully into an angle of vision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/what-the-newer-landscape-artists-see-in-a-circle-of-a-hundred-degrees/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [You call me a misanthrope because I avoid society. You err; I love society. Yet in order not to hate people, I must avoid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/you-call-me-a-misanthrope-because-i-avoid-society-you-err-i-love/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The artist should paint not only what he sees before him, but also what he sees within him. If, however, he sees nothing within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-artist-should-paint-not-only-what-he-sees-before-him-but-also/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [I must stay alone and know that I am alone to contemplate and feel nature in full; I have to surrender myself to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/i-must-stay-alone-and-know-that-i-am-alone-to-contemplate-and-feel-2/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [The eye and fantasy feel more attracted by nebulous distance than by that which is close and distinct in front of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/the-eye-and-fantasy-feel-more-attracted-by-nebulous-distance-than-by/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [When a scene is shrouded in mist, it seems greater, nobler, and heightens the viewers' imaginative powers, increasing expectation - like a veiled girl.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/when-a-scene-is-shrouded-in-mist-it-seems-greater-nobler-and/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) > [A painting which does not take its inspiration from the heart is nothing more than futile juggling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-david-friedrich/a-painting-which-does-not-take-its-inspiration-from-the-heart-is/) [Caspar David Friedrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) [Explore all 23 Caspar David Friedrich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-david-friedrich/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. 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