--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Few people nowadays know what man is…" description: "\"“Few people nowadays know what man is. Many feel it intuitively and die more easily for that reason, just as I shall die more easily when I have comple..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/hermann-hesse-130_dies_few-people-nowadays-know-what-man-is-man_1103749.png" --- # Few people nowadays know what man is. Many feel it… ![“Few people nowadays know what man is. Many feel it intuitively and die more easily for that reason, just as I shall die more easily when I have completed this story.” quote by Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/hermann-hesse-130_dies_few-people-nowadays-know-what-man-is-man_1103749.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/hermann-hesse-130_dies_few-people-nowadays-know-what-man-is-man_1103749.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1c/hermann-hesse-130_dies_few-people-nowadays-know-what-man-is-man_1103749.png) > ““Few people nowadays know what man is. Many feel it intuitively and die more easily for that reason, just as I shall die more easily when I have completed this story.”” [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern people often lack self‑knowledge, leading to intuitive but fragile identities. **In simple terms:** Many lack true self‑understanding. Key Takeaway Seek deeper self‑knowledge. Themes identity existence self‑knowledge intuition fragility Mood melancholic thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - therapy - creative writing - spiritual practice Key Concepts existentialism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What steps deepen self‑understanding? - How does intuition both help and hinder? A Different Perspective Intuition alone may be misleading. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Die Easily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/die-easily-738493/) [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Feel Intuitively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-intuitively-2904956/) [Intuitively Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intuitively-die-2904955/) [Know Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-man/) [Man Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-feel/) ## Related quotes > [I only read a book if I feel intuitively led to read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/echo-bodine/i-only-read-a-book-if-i-feel-intuitively-led-to-read-it/) [Echo Bodine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/echo-bodine/) > [The right to die can so easily become the duty to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-saunders/the-right-to-die-can-so-easily-become-the-duty-to-die/) [Peter Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-saunders/) > [The right to die can easily become the duty to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-saunders/the-right-to-die-can-easily-become-the-duty-to-die/) [Peter Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-saunders/) > [“I wasn't human enough to die easily.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-daniels/i-wasn-t-human-enough-to-die-easily/) [J.C. Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-daniels/) > [“Love does not die easily. It is a living thing. it thrives in the face of all life s hazards save one neglect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bryden/love-does-not-die-easily-it-is-a-living-thing-it-thrives-in-the-face/) [James Bryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bryden/) > [Feelings don't die easily because we keep feeding them with memories..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/feelings-don-t-die-easily-because-we-keep-feeding-them-with-memories/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Feeling don't die easily because we keep feeding them with memories. 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This apprehension can come out of the blue, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/man-may-feel-like-a-feeble-and-powerless-pawn-at-some-moment-in-his/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [Oh, he treats me with respect, he says he loves me all the time, he calls me fifteen times a day, he likes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-allen/oh-he-treats-me-with-respect-he-says-he-loves-me-all-the-time-he/) [Lily Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-allen/) > [“It’s…” She couldn’t finish. “Don’t try, Miss Redmond,” he agreed, shading his eyes. “There are honestly no suitable words, so we shall not fault…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-anne-long/it-s-she-couldn-t-finish-don-t-try-miss-redmond-he-agreed-shading-his/) [Julie Anne Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-anne-long/) > [I don't ever want a man to feel like he owns me. I want a man to feel like he has me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laine/i-don-t-ever-want-a-man-to-feel-like-he-owns-me-i-want-a-man-to-feel/) [Laine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laine/) ## More by Hermann Hesse > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [A home isn't just a roof over our heads. A home is a place where we feel loved and where we love others. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-home-isn-t-just-a-roof-over-our-heads-a-home-is-a-place-where-we/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Fortunately, like most children, I had learned what is most valuable, most indispensable for life before school years began, taught by apple trees, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/fortunately-like-most-children-i-had-learned-what-is-most-valuable/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“The mistaken and unhappy notion that a man is an enduring unity is known to you. It is also known to you that a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-mistaken-and-unhappy-notion-that-a-man-is-an-enduring-unity-is/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“... it would be better for our country and the world in general, if at least the few people who were capable of thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-would-be-better-for-our-country-and-the-world-in-general-if-at/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [The bird fights its way out of the egg. The egg is the world. Who would be born must first destroy a world. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/the-bird-fights-its-way-out-of-the-egg-the-egg-is-the-world-who-would/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Everything becomes a little different as soon as it is spoken out loud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/everything-becomes-a-little-different-as-soon-as-it-is-spoken-out-loud/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [It may be important to great thinkers to examine the world, to explain and despise it. But I think it is only important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-may-be-important-to-great-thinkers-to-examine-the-world-to-explain/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“..it is useless for you to build walls and dormitories and chapels and churches. Death looks through the window and laughs..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/it-is-useless-for-you-to-build-walls-and-dormitories-and-chapels-and/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“When the world is at peace, when all things are tranquil and all men obey their superiors in all their courses, then music can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/when-the-world-is-at-peace-when-all-things-are-tranquil-and-all-men/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [A mere nothing suffices — and the lightning strikes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/a-mere-nothing-suffices-and-the-lightning-strikes/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“And if time is not real, then the dividing line that seems to lie between this world and eternity, between suffering and bliss, between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/and-if-time-is-not-real-then-the-dividing-line-that-seems-to-lie/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Beautiful was this world, looking at it thus, without searching, thus simply, thus childlike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/beautiful-was-this-world-looking-at-it-thus-without-searching-thus/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Were not the gods forms created like me and you, mortal, transient?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/were-not-the-gods-forms-created-like-me-and-you-mortal-transient/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) [Explore all 951 Hermann Hesse quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## 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": "“Few people nowadays know what man is. 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