--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I still don't even know if the sheriff…" description: "\"I still don't even know if the sheriff will let me see him. And suppose he did; what then? What do I say to him? Do I know what a man is? Do I know how..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69a/ernest-gaines-15825_dies_i-still-don-t-even-know-if-the-sheriff-w_2152484.jpg" --- # I still don't even know if the sheriff will let me see… ![“I still don't even know if the sheriff will let me see him. And suppose he did; what then? What do I say to him? Do I know what a man is? Do I know how a man is supposed to die? I'm still trying to find out how a man should live. Am I supposed to tell someone how to die who has never lived?” quote by Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69a/ernest-gaines-15825_dies_i-still-don-t-even-know-if-the-sheriff-w_2152484.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69a/ernest-gaines-15825_dies_i-still-don-t-even-know-if-the-sheriff-w_2152484.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/69a/ernest-gaines-15825_dies_i-still-don-t-even-know-if-the-sheriff-w_2152484.jpg) > “I still don't even know if the sheriff will let me see him. And suppose he did; what then? What do I say to him? Do I know what a man is? Do I know how a man is supposed to die? I'm still trying to find out how a man should live. Am I supposed to tell someone how to die who has never lived?” [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator questions existential purpose and the moral weight of influencing another’s fate. **In simple terms:** Questioning how to guide a life. Key Takeaway Reflect on personal responsibility and empathy. Themes existentialism morality human connection Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal crises - ethical dilemmas - interpersonal counseling - philosophical inquiry Key Concepts identity death purpose guidance Questions to Reflect On - What responsibilities do we hold toward others? - How do we define a meaningful life? A Different Perspective Answers may be uncertain and context‑dependent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Dying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dying/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Know how](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-how/) [Know Sheriff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-sheriff-4531593/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Let me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/let-me/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Sheriff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sheriff/) [Sheriff Let](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sheriff-let-4531594/) [Sheriffs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sheriffs/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Supposed Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supposed-die-880925/) [Tell Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-die-253214/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) ## Related quotes > [“Grady’s a man of action who craves excitement and needs plenty of activity, and he’s seen precious little of either in the ten or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-grace-staley/grady-s-a-man-of-action-who-craves-excitement-and-needs-plenty-of/) [Deborah Grace Staley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-grace-staley/) > [“Do I know what a man is ? Do I know how a man is supposed to die ? I’m still trying to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-j-gaines/do-i-know-what-a-man-is-do-i-know-how-a-man-is-supposed-to-die-i-m/) [Ernest J. Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-j-gaines/) > [The U.S. can no longer be the sheriff for the whole world. We can't be everywhere, and we can't always use military boots on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dutch-ruppersberger/the-u-s-can-no-longer-be-the-sheriff-for-the-whole-world-we-can-t-be/) [Dutch Ruppersberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dutch-ruppersberger/) > [ People there’s a new sheriff in town. One of the great running backs in line of Pittsburgh Steelers \[and\] his name is Le’Veon Bell.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ladainian-tomlinson/people-there-s-a-new-sheriff-in-town-one-of-the-great-running-backs/) [LaDainian Tomlinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ladainian-tomlinson/) > [Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a great guy.He endorsed me because I'm the best in immigration. And I think by his definition of the best, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/sheriff-joe-arpaio-a-great-guy-he-endorsed-me-because-i-m-the-best-in/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [I'm a star: SHERIFF BADGE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/i-m-a-star-sheriff-badge/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [We had the support of the Democratic sheriff of my parish which was the popular Democratic Sheriff of my parish, Harry Lee who was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duke/we-had-the-support-of-the-democratic-sheriff-of-my-parish-which-was/) [David Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duke/) > [After I outlined 'Catering to Nobody,' I went and worked for a caterer. And the other thing I had to do was to talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-mott-davidson/after-i-outlined-catering-to-nobody-i-went-and-worked-for-a-caterer/) [Diane Mott Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-mott-davidson/) > [It takes a lot of work to do this every day, every day, but I feel, as a sheriff, I should get to know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-arpaio/it-takes-a-lot-of-work-to-do-this-every-day-every-day-but-i-feel-as-a/) [Joe Arpaio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-arpaio/) > [I shot the sheriff, but I didn't shoot no deputy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-marley/i-shot-the-sheriff-but-i-didn-t-shoot-no-deputy/) [Bob Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-marley/) > [The cyber world is sort of the Wild, Wild West, and to some degree, we're asked to be the sheriff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-cyber-world-is-sort-of-the-wild-wild-west-and-to-some-degree-we/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Sheriff Joe Arpaio in Phoenix arrested three people. As soon as he arrested those three people, everybody else immediate left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/sheriff-joe-arpaio-in-phoenix-arrested-three-people-as-soon-as-he/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Personally I had the opportunity to go on several ride alongs with the LA County Sheriff's Department with some amazing detectives, who were invaluable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-mckeon/personally-i-had-the-opportunity-to-go-on-several-ride-alongs-with/) [Nancy McKeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-mckeon/) > [I don't care to be good, Sheriff. I care to be whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-don-t-care-to-be-good-sheriff-i-care-to-be-whole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [I roam the streets all the time. You'll be shocked. I'm shocked, everybody that comes up to me, "Oh, thank you, Sheriff. You're supporting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-arpaio/i-roam-the-streets-all-the-time-you-ll-be-shocked-i-m-shocked/) [Joe Arpaio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-arpaio/) ## More by Ernest Gaines > [I try to write something that would interest anybody and keep them turning the page. You must have a plot and good storyline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-try-to-write-something-that-would-interest-anybody-and-keep-them/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Words mean nothing. Action is the only thing. Doing. That's the only thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/words-mean-nothing-action-is-the-only-thing-doing-that-s-the-only/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [In all my stories and novels, no one ever escapes Louisiana. Maybe that is because my soul never left Louisiana, although my body did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/in-all-my-stories-and-novels-no-one-ever-escapes-louisiana-maybe-that/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I think I'm a very religious person. I think I believe in God as much as any man does. I don't only believe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-think-i-m-a-very-religious-person-i-think-i-believe-in-god-as-much/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [There will always be men struggling...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/there-will-always-be-men-struggling/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [What for?" I said. "What for, Tante Lou? He treated me the same way he treated her. He wants me to feel guilty, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/what-for-i-said-what-for-tante-lou-he-treated-me-the-same-way-he/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [We all have much more in common than we have difference. I would say that about people all over the world. They don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/we-all-have-much-more-in-common-than-we-have-difference-i-would-say/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I believe that the writer should tell a story. I believe in plot. I believe in creating characters and suspense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-believe-that-the-writer-should-tell-a-story-i-believe-in-plot-i/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [A myth is an old lie that people believe in. White people believe that they're better than anyone else on earth - and that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/a-myth-is-an-old-lie-that-people-believe-in-white-people-believe-that/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I have learned as much about writing about my people by listening to blues and jazz and spirituals as I have by reading novels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-have-learned-as-much-about-writing-about-my-people-by-listening-to/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [When I'm sitting in the church alone, I can hear singing of the old people. I can hear their singing and I can hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/when-i-m-sitting-in-the-church-alone-i-can-hear-singing-of-the-old/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Question everything. Every stripe, every star, every word spoken. Everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/question-everything-every-stripe-every-star-every-word-spoken/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Now, about that mulatto teacher and me. There was no love there for each other. There was not even respect. We were enemies if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/now-about-that-mulatto-teacher-and-me-there-was-no-love-there-for/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [Without love for my fellow man and respect for nature, to me, life is an obscenity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/without-love-for-my-fellow-man-and-respect-for-nature-to-me-life-is/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) > [I knew I wanted to be a writer and I knew if I had a wife and family, I would neglect something, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-gaines/i-knew-i-wanted-to-be-a-writer-and-i-knew-if-i-had-a-wife-and-family/) [Ernest Gaines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) [Explore all 41 Ernest Gaines quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-gaines/) ## More Dies quotes > [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'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [Don't even think for a moment that you are not going to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzongsar-jamyang-khyentse-rinpoche/don-t-even-think-for-a-moment-that-you-are-not-going-to-die/) [Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzongsar-jamyang-khyentse-rinpoche/) > [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. Each civilization dies from indifference toward the unique values which created it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/violence-is-not-necessary-to-destroy-a-civilization-each-civilization/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/) [Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/) > [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/) [Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/) > [“When he stops giving you butterflies, Love dies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-blanchard/when-he-stops-giving-you-butterflies-love-dies/) [Michelle Blanchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-blanchard/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [I don't want to just die a normal death, I wanna be killed twice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-don-t-want-to-just-die-a-normal-death-i-wanna-be-killed-twice/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [My father thrives on fear. You know that prayer If I should die before I wake? I had sheets that said that!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-titus/my-father-thrives-on-fear-you-know-that-prayer-if-i-should-die-before/) [Christopher Titus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-titus/) > [For the glory born of Goodness Never dies, And its flag is not half-masted In the skies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-harte/for-the-glory-born-of-goodness-never-dies-and-its-flag-is-not-half/) [Bret Harte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-harte/) > [This mind is a prison. It cannot find any freedom anywhere. It must die before freedom comes to you. But we have taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/this-mind-is-a-prison-it-cannot-find-any-freedom-anywhere-it-must-die/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [An artist's creative energy is ephemeral as a flower. It blooms and soon dies. No artist is great forever. Personally, I think I reached…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-ki-duk/an-artist-s-creative-energy-is-ephemeral-as-a-flower-it-blooms-and/) [Kim Ki-duk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-ki-duk/) > [If you’re going to die on screen, you’ve got to be strong and in good health.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-garbo/if-you-re-going-to-die-on-screen-you-ve-got-to-be-strong-and-in-good/) [Greta Garbo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-garbo/) [Browse all 7,484 Dies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I still don't even know if the sheriff will let me see him. And suppose he did; what then? What do I say to him? Do I know what a man is? Do I know how a man is supposed to die? I'm still trying to find out how a man should live. 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