--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we look back in time and study old…" description: "\"When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a00/elisabeth-kubler-ross-1892_always_when-we-look-back-in-time-and-study-old_2481250.png" --- # When we look back in time and study old cultures and… ![“When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be. From a psychiatrist's point of view, this is very understandable and can perhaps best be explained by our basic knowledge that, in our…” quote by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a00/elisabeth-kubler-ross-1892_always_when-we-look-back-in-time-and-study-old_2481250.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a00/elisabeth-kubler-ross-1892_always_when-we-look-back-in-time-and-study-old_2481250.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a00/elisabeth-kubler-ross-1892_always_when-we-look-back-in-time-and-study-old_2481250.png) > “When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be. From a psychiatrist's point of view, this is very understandable and can perhaps best be explained by our basic knowledge that, in our unconscious, death is never possible in regard to ourselves.” [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Humans deny death, making it a persistent source of fear. **In simple terms:** Denial of death fuels fear. Key Takeaway Confront mortality to reduce anxiety. Themes mortality denial fear Mood somber contemplative Type philosophical therapeutic When to use this quote - counseling - education - rituals - life planning Key Concepts existential psychology thanology human nature Questions to Reflect On - How does your view of death affect daily life? - What practices help you accept mortality? A Different Perspective Denial can also protect mental stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Always](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) [Back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back/) [Basic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basic/) [Been](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/been/) [Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best/) [Cultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultures/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death Distasteful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-distasteful-865412/) [Death Possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-possible-865414/) [Explained](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/explained/) [Impressed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impressed/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Look](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/look/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old/) [Old culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-culture/) [Old Cultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-cultures-865415/) [Our](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our/) [Ourselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ourselves/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Perhaps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perhaps/) [Point](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) [Possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possible/) [Psychiatrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychiatrist/) [Regard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regard/) [Study](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Unconscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unconscious/) [Unconscious Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unconscious-death-865413/) [Understandable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understandable/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [View](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/view/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) ## Related quotes > [When I came to this country in 1958, to be a dying patient in a medical hospital was a nightmare. You were put in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/when-i-came-to-this-country-in-1958-to-be-a-dying-patient-in-a/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [There is but one freedom, to put oneself right with death. After that everything is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-is-but-one-freedom-to-put-oneself-right-with-death-after-that/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“When love is stronger than death, anything is possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-trujillo/when-love-is-stronger-than-death-anything-is-possible/) [Christy Trujillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-trujillo/) > [“There's a psychological mechanism, I've come to believe, that prevents most of us from imagining the moment of our own death. For if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandar-hemon/there-s-a-psychological-mechanism-i-ve-come-to-believe-that-prevents-2/) [Aleksandar Hemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandar-hemon/) > [“There’s a psychological mechanism, I’ve come to believe, that prevents most of us from imagining the moment of our own death. For if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandar-hemon/there-s-a-psychological-mechanism-i-ve-come-to-believe-that-prevents/) [Aleksandar Hemon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandar-hemon/) > [“The time when you wish if death was possible from a heartbreak”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-joshi/the-time-when-you-wish-if-death-was-possible-from-a-heartbreak/) [Kiran Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-joshi/) > [Come to terms with death. Thereafter anything is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-solomon/come-to-terms-with-death-thereafter-anything-is-possible/) [Sheldon Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-solomon/) > [There's no question that the gay movement would not be as far along as it is without AIDS. But how can there be any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-kramer/there-s-no-question-that-the-gay-movement-would-not-be-as-far-along/) [Larry Kramer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-kramer/) > [Your body must become familiar with its death - in all its possible forms and degrees - as a self-evident, imminent, and emotionally neutral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dag-hammarskj-ld/your-body-must-become-familiar-with-its-death-in-all-its-possible/) [Dag Hammarskjold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dag-hammarskj-ld/) > [“Alot can happen in eleven minutes. Decker can run two miles in eleven minutes. I once wrote an English essay in ten. And God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-miranda/alot-can-happen-in-eleven-minutes-decker-can-run-two-miles-in-eleven/) [Megan Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-miranda/) > [“If you have never did a mistake, then death is impossibe, but then, death is a possible mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/if-you-have-never-did-a-mistake-then-death-is-impossibe-but-then/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [When a scholar of the old culture vows no longer to have anything to do with men who believe in progress, he is right.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/when-a-scholar-of-the-old-culture-vows-no-longer-to-have-anything-to/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Ours is certainly not an old culture. Yet in recent decades we've used more energy, destroyed more soil, created more pathogenicity (temporarily stopped some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-salatin/ours-is-certainly-not-an-old-culture-yet-in-recent-decades-we-ve-used/) [Joel Salatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-salatin/) > [The Islamic culture is a question mark for many people across the world, but Qatar opens its doors to supporters all over the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-batistuta/the-islamic-culture-is-a-question-mark-for-many-people-across-the/) [Gabriel Batistuta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-batistuta/) > [When people say that L.A. doesn't have a culture, I think it really does: a very old culture, and very specific. There's streets named…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-armisen/when-people-say-that-l-a-doesn-t-have-a-culture-i-think-it-really/) [Fred Armisen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-armisen/) ## More by Elisabeth Kubler-Ross > [Watching a peaceful death of a human being reminds us of a falling star; one of a million lights in a vast sky that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/watching-a-peaceful-death-of-a-human-being-reminds-us-of-a-falling/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [Death is staring too long into the burning sun and the relief of entering a cool, dark room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/death-is-staring-too-long-into-the-burning-sun-and-the-relief-of/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [There is not much sense in suffering, since drugs can be given for pain, itching, and other discomforts. The belief has long died that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/there-is-not-much-sense-in-suffering-since-drugs-can-be-given-for/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [When I came to this country in 1958, to be a dying patient in a medical hospital was a nightmare. You were put in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/when-i-came-to-this-country-in-1958-to-be-a-dying-patient-in-a/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“La única finalidad de la vida es crecer. La lección última es aprender a amar y a ser amados incondicionalmente.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/la-nica-finalidad-de-la-vida-es-crecer-la-lecci-n-ltima-es-aprender-a/) [Elisabeth Kübler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“We need time to move through the pain of loss. We need to step into it, really to get to know it, in order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/we-need-time-to-move-through-the-pain-of-loss-we-need-to-step-into-it/) [Elisabeth Kübler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [We have to ask ourselves whether medicine is to remain a humanitarian and respected profession or a new but depersonalized science in the service…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/we-have-to-ask-ourselves-whether-medicine-is-to-remain-a-humanitarian/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“The reality is people have always died in large numbers in natural disasters such as avalanches, earthquakes, and tornadoes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/the-reality-is-people-have-always-died-in-large-numbers-in-natural/) [Elisabeth Kübler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [Everything in this life has a purpose, there are no mistakes, no coincidences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/everything-in-this-life-has-a-purpose-there-are-no-mistakes-no/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [We run after values that, at death, become zero. At the end of your life, nobody asks you how many degrees you have, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/we-run-after-values-that-at-death-become-zero-at-the-end-of-your-life/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [In the so-called civilized world, children are physically, sexually and/or emotionally abused; they are the leaders of our future. When children are raised in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/in-the-so-called-civilized-world-children-are-physically-sexually-and/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [I look for mystery and try to decipher it while knowing it is an impossible task. I look for memory, where Mystery lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/i-look-for-mystery-and-try-to-decipher-it-while-knowing-it-is-an/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“Are we all destined to die as failures? Just”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/are-we-all-destined-to-die-as-failures-just/) [Elisabeth Kübler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [“You can become a channel and a source of great inner strength. But you must give up everything in order to gain everything. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/you-can-become-a-channel-and-a-source-of-great-inner-strength-but-you/) [Elisabeth Kübler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [You have to temper the iron. Every hardship is an opportunity that you are given, an opportunity to grow. To grow is the sole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/you-have-to-temper-the-iron-every-hardship-is-an-opportunity-that-you/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) [Explore all 176 Elisabeth Kubler-Ross quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) ## More Always quotes > [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/) [Isa Briones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isa-briones/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/) [William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/) [Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) > [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/) [Robert B. Weide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-weide/) > [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/) [Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/) > [I've always been of the idea that is doesn't really matter where you are geographically - with 'Lonerism,' we made half the album in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-parker/i-ve-always-been-of-the-idea-that-is-doesn-t-really-matter-where-you/) [Kevin Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-parker/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [I always say if you put someone from a small town into a big city for ten years, then when they go back, they'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-always-say-if-you-put-someone-from-a-small-town-into-a-big-city-for/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) > [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/) [Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/) [Browse all 36,048 Always quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be. 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