---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some people are larger than life. Hitler…"
description: "\"Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death.\" — Don DeLillo"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg"
---

#  Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than…

![“Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death.” quote by Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg)

> “Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death.”

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Some individuals achieve legendary status, yet even the most infamous can be eclipsed by mortality.

**In simple terms:** Greatness is temporary; death is ultimate.

Key Takeaway

Remember humility in fame.

Themes

legacy mortality fame

Mood

thought‑provoking somber

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- political leadership
- celebrity culture
- historical analysis

Key Concepts

historical memory ego

Questions to Reflect On

- What does it mean to be larger than life?
- How does mortality reframe fame?

A Different Perspective

Focusing on death may diminish appreciation of life.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hitler/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Larger than life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/larger-than-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/)

## Related quotes

> [“Helpless and fearful people are drawn to magical figures, mythic figures, epic men who intimidate and darkly loom. ... Some people are larger than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/helpless-and-fearful-people-are-drawn-to-magical-figures-mythic-2/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [Television forces people to be larger than life. I would be too shy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heston-blumenthal/television-forces-people-to-be-larger-than-life-i-would-be-too-shy/)

[Heston Blumenthal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heston-blumenthal/)

> [We used to approach a small 400-person show like an arena show, as if I was a star and I was coming out on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-eazy/we-used-to-approach-a-small-400-person-show-like-an-arena-show-as-if/)

[G-Eazy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-eazy/)

> [I have never lived a life so much larger than death. (93)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/i-have-never-lived-a-life-so-much-larger-than-death-93/)

[Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/)

> [High-performance people have larger, more expanded comfort zones than most!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-pena/high-performance-people-have-larger-more-expanded-comfort-zones-than/)

[Dan Pena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-pena/)

> [Larger than life itself, and I can’t even believe this striking creature was once a little bit mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-evans/larger-than-life-itself-and-i-can-t-even-believe-this-striking/)

[Katy Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-evans/)

> [I stay wrecked and jealous for this, for this simple reason I just need to keep you in mind as something larger than life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keys/i-stay-wrecked-and-jealous-for-this-for-this-simple-reason-i-just/)

[Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keys/)

> [Poker is a charismatic game. People who are larger than life play poker and make their living from playing games and hustling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-altucher/poker-is-a-charismatic-game-people-who-are-larger-than-life-play/)

[James Altucher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-altucher/)

> [I didn't want to be the crippled songwriter or the crippled singer. I wanted to be the singer or the songwriter who was crippled.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doc-pomus/i-didn-t-want-to-be-the-crippled-songwriter-or-the-crippled-singer-i/)

Doc Pomus

> [Today America lost a great elder statesman, a committed public servant, and leader of the Senate. And today I lost a treasured friend. Ted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-hatch/today-america-lost-a-great-elder-statesman-a-committed-public-servant/)

[Orrin Hatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-hatch/)

> [People think that we're crazy because we do six nights a week. I would physically not be able to take it, especially when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-thomas/people-think-that-we-re-crazy-because-we-do-six-nights-a-week-i-would/)

[Rob Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-thomas/)

> [Blackbeard was larger than life. He was 6'4" in 1710. He was a colossus, and like a rock star walking into a bar. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-stevenson/blackbeard-was-larger-than-life-he-was-6-4-in-1710-he-was-a-colossus/)

[Ray Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-stevenson/)

> [I joked at our National Convention that our party was nominating a candidate for president who was charismatic, larger than life, memorable, so they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/i-joked-at-our-national-convention-that-our-party-was-nominating-a/)

[Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/)

> [As far as lighting and blocking, camera angles and facial expressions, all that stuff that has to be very specific in film, as opposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-torres/as-far-as-lighting-and-blocking-camera-angles-and-facial-expressions/)

[Eve Torres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-torres/)

> [Every man's heart one day beats its final beat. His lungs breathe a final breath. And if what that man did in his life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-ultimate-warrior/every-man-s-heart-one-day-beats-its-final-beat-his-lungs-breathe-a/)

[The Ultimate Warrior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-ultimate-warrior/)

## More by Don DeLillo

> [“We all know how the thing we secretly fear is not a secret at all but the open and eternal thing that predicts its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/we-all-know-how-the-thing-we-secretly-fear-is-not-a-secret-at-all-but/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [Everything is barely weeks. Everything is days. We have minutes to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/everything-is-barely-weeks-everything-is-days-we-have-minutes-to-live/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [The novel is the dream release, the suspension of reality that history needs to escape its own brutal confinements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-novel-is-the-dream-release-the-suspension-of-reality-that-history/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“As I listened I thought a featureless baggy man was striking me in slow motion with a well-polished stone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/as-i-listened-i-thought-a-featureless-baggy-man-was-striking-me-in/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“Murray said, 'I don't trust anybody's nostalgia but my own. Nostalgia is a product of dissatisfaction and rage. It´s a settling of grievances between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/murray-said-i-don-t-trust-anybody-s-nostalgia-but-my-own-nostalgia-is/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“She is beginning to think it is possible that all creation is a spurt of blank matter that chances to make an emerald planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/she-is-beginning-to-think-it-is-possible-that-all-creation-is-a-spurt/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“Those who have abandoned belief must still believe in us. They are sure that they are right not to believe but they know belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/those-who-have-abandoned-belief-must-still-believe-in-us-they-are/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“The plane had lost power in all three engines, dropped from thirty-four thousand feet to twelve thousand feet. Something like four miles. When the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-plane-had-lost-power-in-all-three-engines-dropped-from-thirty/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“Grass: I live in a great steel tower that reflects the blazing sun. People catch fire just walking by. The more bodies that pile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/grass-i-live-in-a-great-steel-tower-that-reflects-the-blazing-sun/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“What people discard could make a nation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/what-people-discard-could-make-a-nation/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“Marriage is something we make from available materials. In this sense it’s improvised, it’s almost offhand. Maybe this is why we know so little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/marriage-is-something-we-make-from-available-materials-in-this-sense/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [The true life is not reducible to words spoken or written, not by anyone, ever. The true life takes place when we're alone, thinking,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-true-life-is-not-reducible-to-words-spoken-or-written-not-by/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [I've come to think of Europe as a hardcover book, America as the paperback version.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/i-ve-come-to-think-of-europe-as-a-hardcover-book-america-as-the/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [There is a set of balances and rhythms to a novel that we can't experience in real life. So I think there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/there-is-a-set-of-balances-and-rhythms-to-a-novel-that-we-can-t/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [“There is no lie in war or preparation of war that can't be defended. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/there-is-no-lie-in-war-or-preparation-of-war-that-can-t-be-defended/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

[Explore all 699 Don DeLillo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

## 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

> [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

> [“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. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/)

[Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/)

> [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/)

[Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/)

[Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Don DeLillo"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler-is-larger-than-death/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Death"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler-is-larger-than-death/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/032/don-delillo-294_death_some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler_2382217.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Some people are larger than life. Hitler is larger than death.” — Don DeLillo",
                "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": "Don DeLillo",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Some people are larger than life....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler-is-larger-than-death/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/some-people-are-larger-than-life-hitler-is-larger-than-death/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
