---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My mother told me that dead men don't sing"
description: "\"“My mother told me that dead men don't sing”\" — George R.R. Martin"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png"
---

#  My mother told me that dead men don't sing

![“My mother told me that dead men don't sing” quote by George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png)

> ““My mother told me that dead men don't sing””

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

## About This Quote

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

The quote suggests that those who are dead are beyond the need or ability to express themselves, implying silence after death.

**In simple terms:** Dead people cannot sing.

Key Takeaway

Remember the value of voice while alive.

Themes

mortality silence expression

Mood

somber reflective

Type

literary philosophical

When to use this quote

- funeral rites
- historical reflection
- literary analysis

Key Concepts

existentialism finality

Questions to Reflect On

- What does it mean to give a voice to the dead?
- How does silence shape memory?

A Different Perspective

The metaphor may overlook cultural traditions where the dead are commemorated through song.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/)

## Related quotes

> [“Aerys Targaryen did as he liked. Has your mother ever told you what happened to him?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/aerys-targaryen-did-as-he-liked-has-your-mother-ever-told-you-what/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“(Will unsheathed his sword.) What is it you do? (Stryder) Remember when you told us you’d rather be dead than married? (Val)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kinley-macgregor/will-unsheathed-his-sword-what-is-it-you-do-stryder-remember-when-you/)

[Kinley MacGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kinley-macgregor/)

> [“Never wound a foe when you can kill him. Dead men don’t claim vengeance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/never-wound-a-foe-when-you-can-kill-him-dead-men-don-t-claim-vengeance/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“When dead men come hunting in the night, do you think it matters who sits on the Iron Throne?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/when-dead-men-come-hunting-in-the-night-do-you-think-it-matters-who/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [My mother always told me if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-faison/my-mother-always-told-me-if-you-don-t-have-anything-nice-to-say-don-t/)

[Donald Faison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-faison/)

> [My mother told me stories all the time... And in all of those stories she told me who I was, who I was supposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-gunn-allen/my-mother-told-me-stories-all-the-time-and-in-all-of-those-stories/)

[Paula Gunn Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-gunn-allen/)

> [How old am I? I'm as old as my mother told me. How's that?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-manson/how-old-am-i-i-m-as-old-as-my-mother-told-me-how-s-that/)

[Charles Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-manson/)

> [“Eventually I had to call upon Dan's master dumping skills to assist me. Which was of course a bad move. A very bad.move. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-gayle/eventually-i-had-to-call-upon-dan-s-master-dumping-skills-to-assist/)

[Mike Gayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-gayle/)

> [“Leandred never uses magic without reason. He’s not going to freak out and do magic because he experiences emotion. It’s doubtful, anyway.” Patrick shrugged.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-zoelle/leandred-never-uses-magic-without-reason-he-s-not-going-to-freak-out/)

[Anne Zoelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-zoelle/)

> [I think there are several aspects of our marraige we're going to have to work on." "Babes," he told her. "You're dead." "That's one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-think-there-are-several-aspects-of-our-marraige-we-re-going-to-have/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [They told me, Heraclitus, they told me you were dead, / They brought me bitter news to hear, and bitter tears to shed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-johnson-cory/they-told-me-heraclitus-they-told-me-you-were-dead-they-brought-me/)

[William Johnson Cory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-johnson-cory/)

> [Hadrian leapt to his feet. Royce was already up. “Don’t bother,” Esrahaddon told them. “She’s dead, and there’s nothing you can do. The monster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-sullivan/hadrian-leapt-to-his-feet-royce-was-already-up-don-t-bother/)

[Michael J. Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-sullivan/)

> [“Something dug into the Bloody-Nine's back, but there was no pain. It was a sign. A message in a secret tongue, that only he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-abercrombie/something-dug-into-the-bloody-nine-s-back-but-there-was-no-pain-it/)

[Joe Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-abercrombie/)

> [“You told me he was dead." Red said through his teeth, "There was no point,for there's no meaner, more petty man in all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/you-told-me-he-was-dead-red-said-through-his-teeth-there-was-no-point/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [You can't have my heart, the doctor told me I'd be dead without it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/you-can-t-have-my-heart-the-doctor-told-me-i-d-be-dead-without-it/)

[Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/)

## More by George R.R. Martin

> [“Neither's the one you get, less you want me to see if your apple's ripe, yet. - Yoren”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/neither-s-the-one-you-get-less-you-want-me-to-see-if-your-apple-s/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“You are the queen, he ought to be begging leave of you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/you-are-the-queen-he-ought-to-be-begging-leave-of-you/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“It is my look they will flinch from now, my frown that they must fear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/it-is-my-look-they-will-flinch-from-now-my-frown-that-they-must-fear/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“A good threat is often more telling than a blow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/a-good-threat-is-often-more-telling-than-a-blow/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“This wine is very choice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/this-wine-is-very-choice/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“Everything Syrio Forel had ever taught her vanished in a heartbeat. In that instant of sudden terror, the only lesson Arya could remember was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/everything-syrio-forel-had-ever-taught-her-vanished-in-a-heartbeat-in/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“Megga couldn’t sing, but she was mad to be kissed. She and Alla played a kissing game sometimes, she confessed, but it wasn’t the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/megga-couldn-t-sing-but-she-was-mad-to-be-kissed-she-and-alla-played/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“The rain feels good against my face, Sam. It feels like tears. Let me stay a while longer, I pray you. It has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/the-rain-feels-good-against-my-face-sam-it-feels-like-tears-let-me/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“Every man who walks the earth casts a shadow on the world. Some are thin and weak, others long and dark.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/every-man-who-walks-the-earth-casts-a-shadow-on-the-world-some-are/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“The shy girl she had known at Riverrun had grown into a woman who was by turns proud, fearful, cruel, dreamy, reckless, timid, stubborn,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/the-shy-girl-she-had-known-at-riverrun-had-grown-into-a-woman-who-was/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“He won the war on the battlefield and lost it in a bedchamber, poor fool.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/he-won-the-war-on-the-battlefield-and-lost-it-in-a-bedchamber-poor/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“On the morning after battle the crows had feasted on victors and vanquished alike. How much can a crown be worth when a crow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/on-the-morning-after-battle-the-crows-had-feasted-on-victors-and/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“The little man gave the big one a look. One of his eyes was green, one was black, and both were cool.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/the-little-man-gave-the-big-one-a-look-one-of-his-eyes-was-green-one/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“Jon, could there be honor in a lie, if it were told for a...good purpose? - Samwell”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/jon-could-there-be-honor-in-a-lie-if-it-were-told-for-a-good-purpose/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

> [“My mother said my father had a drop of dragon blood.” “Two drops. That, or a cock six feet long.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/my-mother-said-my-father-had-a-drop-of-dragon-blood-two-drops-that-or/)

[George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

[Explore all 1,761 George R.R. Martin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/)

## More Mother quotes

> [My mother says I didn't open my eyes for eight days after I was born, but when I did, the first thing I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-mother-says-i-didn-t-open-my-eyes-for-eight-days-after-i-was-born/)

[Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/)

> [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/)

[Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/)

> [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/)

[Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/)

> [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/)

[Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/)

> [My mother was strong-willed, demanding, and very supportive all at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-spence/my-mother-was-strong-willed-demanding-and-very-supportive-all-at-the/)

[Michael Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-spence/)

> [Everything comes home, my mother used to say; every word spoken, every shadow cast, every footprint in the sand. It can't be helped; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-harris/everything-comes-home-my-mother-used-to-say-every-word-spoken-every/)

[Joanne Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-harris/)

> [I would give anything to be able to kick a ball with my son or read the kids a bedtime story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-burrow/i-would-give-anything-to-be-able-to-kick-a-ball-with-my-son-or-read/)

[Rob Burrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-burrow/)

> [Being a new mother is a blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phaedra-parks/being-a-new-mother-is-a-blessing/)

[Phaedra Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phaedra-parks/)

> [Named after my mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/named-after-my-mother/)

[Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/)

> [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/)

[Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/)

> [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/)

[Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/)

> [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/)

[Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/)

> [Peace is the first thing the angels sang. Peace is the mark of the children of God. Peace is the nurse of love. Peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-i/peace-is-the-first-thing-the-angels-sang-peace-is-the-mark-of-the/)

[Pope Leo I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-i/)

> [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

> [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/)

[Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/)

[Browse all 24,507 Mother quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“My mother told me that dead men don't sing”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "George R.R. Martin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-sing/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Mother"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-sing/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e96/george-r-r-martin-48_mother_my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-si_328146.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“My mother told me that dead men don't sing” — George R.R. Martin",
                "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": "George R.R. Martin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“My mother told me that dead...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-sing/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/my-mother-told-me-that-dead-men-don-t-sing/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
