--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Skip experienced no excitement. Only the…" description: "\"“Skip experienced no excitement. Only the lethargy and sadness of a man freezing to death.”\" — Denis Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b31/denis-johnson-2135_death_skip-experienced-no-excitement-only-the_1507579.png" --- # Skip experienced no excitement. Only the lethargy and… ![“Skip experienced no excitement. Only the lethargy and sadness of a man freezing to death.” quote by Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b31/denis-johnson-2135_death_skip-experienced-no-excitement-only-the_1507579.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b31/denis-johnson-2135_death_skip-experienced-no-excitement-only-the_1507579.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b31/denis-johnson-2135_death_skip-experienced-no-excitement-only-the_1507579.png) > ““Skip experienced no excitement. Only the lethargy and sadness of a man freezing to death.”” [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man facing death feels only numbness and sorrow, not excitement. **In simple terms:** Death brings only bleakness. Key Takeaway Recognize the emptiness of despair. Themes mortality emotion existential Mood somber reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - terminal illness - loneliness - extreme cold - psychological crisis Key Concepts nihilism human condition Questions to Reflect On - How does confronting mortality change your priorities? - Can numbness be a signal for change? A Different Perspective Hope or meaning can alter perception of death. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Excitement Lethargy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excitement-lethargy-5016245/) [Freezing Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freezing-death-519853/) [Lethargy Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lethargy-sadness-5543279/) [Man Freezing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-freezing-5543278/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Sadness Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness-man-1078701/) ## Related quotes > [Drugs age you after mental excitement. Lethargy then. Why? Reaction. A lifetime in a night. Gradually changes your character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/drugs-age-you-after-mental-excitement-lethargy-then-why-reaction-a/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [With each sadness a woman gets more beautiful. I wonder if with each sadness a man gets stronger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gackt/with-each-sadness-a-woman-gets-more-beautiful-i-wonder-if-with-each/) [Gackt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gackt/) > [“Lebedev: A time has come of sorrow and sadness for you. Man, my dear friend, is like a samovar. It doesn't always stand on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/lebedev-a-time-has-come-of-sorrow-and-sadness-for-you-man-my-dear/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [“It's one of the great fallacies, it seems to me, that time gives much of anything but years and sadness to man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/it-s-one-of-the-great-fallacies-it-seems-to-me-that-time-gives-much/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“It's so easy to for tragedy to defeat you. It's seductive in the way that I heard freezing to death is. Being consumed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-baron/it-s-so-easy-to-for-tragedy-to-defeat-you-it-s-seductive-in-the-way/) [Michael Baron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-baron/) > [“In the face of all his handicaps, Jurgis was obliged to make the price of a lodging, and of a drink every hour or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/upton-sinclair/in-the-face-of-all-his-handicaps-jurgis-was-obliged-to-make-the-price/) [Upton Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/upton-sinclair/) > [The scholarly authorities on freezing to death seem to be, unsurprisingly, Canadians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-munroe/the-scholarly-authorities-on-freezing-to-death-seem-to-be/) [Randall Munroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-munroe/) > [Twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cressida-cowell/twelve-days-north-of-hopeless-and-a-few-degrees-south-of-freezing-to/) [Cressida Cowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cressida-cowell/) > [“They do say that freezing to death, like drowning, is a good way to die. If you can believe those who lived to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hendrik-groen/they-do-say-that-freezing-to-death-like-drowning-is-a-good-way-to-die/) [Hendrik Groen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hendrik-groen/) > [“I am not only freezing to death but also drowned in pain of beloved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/i-am-not-only-freezing-to-death-but-also-drowned-in-pain-of-beloved/) [Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/) > [“The saddest thing is an old bag lady, freezing to death in the snow on Christmas Eve, and the last thing she sees is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-onstad/the-saddest-thing-is-an-old-bag-lady-freezing-to-death-in-the-snow-on/) [Chris Onstad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-onstad/) > [Our chiefs are killed. . . . The little children are freezing to death. . . . My people have no blankets, no food.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chief-joseph/our-chiefs-are-killed-the-little-children-are-freezing-to-death-my/) [Chief Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chief-joseph/) > [As a child, I spent a lot of time alone. I used to sit in my closet with one cracker. I'd pretend that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teri-hatcher/as-a-child-i-spent-a-lot-of-time-alone-i-used-to-sit-in-my-closet/) [Teri Hatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teri-hatcher/) > [Every man has his secret sadness and sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-man-has-his-secret-sadness-and-sorrows-which-the-world-knows/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I had nowhere to go and did not wish to be seen by anyone for fear they would recognize my sadness and so for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-dewitt/i-had-nowhere-to-go-and-did-not-wish-to-be-seen-by-anyone-for-fear/) [Patrick deWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-dewitt/) ## More by Denis Johnson > [“You’ve never felt good. Your suffering protects you. Pain is the ransom you have gladly paid not to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/you-ve-never-felt-good-your-suffering-protects-you-pain-is-the-ransom/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“He had laid his head back until his scalp had contacted his spine, that far back, and opened his throat, and a sound rose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-had-laid-his-head-back-until-his-scalp-had-contacted-his-spine/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“Everything is arranged," John Robertson told me. Thank God." I forgot to mention that we appear to have one small problem," he said. Okay..."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/everything-is-arranged-john-robertson-told-me-thank-god-i-forgot-to/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [Before this moment I'd lived as a mind. Body, heart, soul, intellect, so we care ourselves into parts. But the whole of us, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/before-this-moment-i-d-lived-as-a-mind-body-heart-soul-intellect-so/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [He got right down in the dark between heartbeats, and rested there. And then he saw that another one wasn't going to come. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-got-right-down-in-the-dark-between-heartbeats-and-rested-there-and/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I’d been staying at the Holiday Inn with my girlfriend, honestly the most beautiful woman I’d even known, for three days under a phony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-d-been-staying-at-the-holiday-inn-with-my-girlfriend-honestly-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“All of this while I left lifted by a strange new medium, a strange element--I now tell you that I was newly buoyant in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/all-of-this-while-i-left-lifted-by-a-strange-new-medium-a-strange/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“He didn’t know what country he was in, but he was at home in the universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/he-didn-t-know-what-country-he-was-in-but-he-was-at-home-in-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“There's a dizzying thrill in a philosophy that can only be tested by suicide.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/there-s-a-dizzying-thrill-in-a-philosophy-that-can-only-be-tested-by/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I really enjoy writing novels. It's like the ocean. You can just build a boat and take off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-really-enjoy-writing-novels-it-s-like-the-ocean-you-can-just-build/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“Who said it? – probably Confucius – “I can’t beat a sculpture from a stone with a sledgehammer; I can’t free the soul of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/who-said-it-probably-confucius-i-can-t-beat-a-sculpture-from-a-stone/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“A bus came. I climbed aboard and sat on the plastic seat while the things of our city turned in the windows like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/a-bus-came-i-climbed-aboard-and-sat-on-the-plastic-seat-while-the/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [I knew every raindrop by its name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/i-knew-every-raindrop-by-its-name/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“To find the people who've became truly sane, seek among those who've managed to do without sanity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/to-find-the-people-who-ve-became-truly-sane-seek-among-those-who-ve/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) > [“eventually these encounters forced him to acknowledge the reality of fate, and the truth inherent in things of the imagination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-johnson/eventually-these-encounters-forced-him-to-acknowledge-the-reality-of/) [Denis Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) [Explore all 183 Denis Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-johnson/) ## 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. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. 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