--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the emotions at death, as at birth, are…" description: "\"the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and primitive.\" — Margaret Millar" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png" --- # the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and… ![“the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and primitive.” quote by Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png) > “the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and primitive.” [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Both birth and death evoke primal, instinctual emotions, highlighting humanity’s deep‑rooted responses to life’s boundaries. **In simple terms:** Birth and death trigger basic, instinctive feelings. Key Takeaway Recognize these primal emotions. Themes life cycles instinct human nature Mood thoughtful contemplative Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - childbirth - end‑of‑life care - personal reflection Key Concepts existential awareness psychology anthropology Questions to Reflect On - How do you feel at the start of a new chapter? - What rituals help you process endings? A Different Perspective Emotions may be culturally shaped, not purely instinctive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Emotions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotions/) [Primitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/primitive/) ## Related quotes > [“Id me didn't have to be concerned with long-term consequences. He was my instinctive, primitive self, driven by my most primal impulses. I wondered,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/id-me-didn-t-have-to-be-concerned-with-long-term-consequences-he-was/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [Violence is the instinctive response to fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/violence-is-the-instinctive-response-to-fear/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [People call me an instinctive actor. I used to consider that an insult early on, only because I had never studied. Now... I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-aiello/people-call-me-an-instinctive-actor-i-used-to-consider-that-an-insult/) [Danny Aiello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-aiello/) > [...science is nothing but developed perception, interpreted intent, common-sense rounded out and minutely articulated. It is therefore as much an instinctive product, as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/science-is-nothing-but-developed-perception-interpreted-intent-common/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [Madonna's great instinctive intelligence was evident to me from her earliest videos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/madonna-s-great-instinctive-intelligence-was-evident-to-me-from-her/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [“Every day try to convert your reactions to responses. 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You just have a sure, instinctive 'Yes!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-mcteer/there-are-some-roles-that-are-a-no-brainer-you-just-have-a-sure/) [Janet McTeer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-mcteer/) > [I'm very instinctive when I choose my roles, and usually, the number one thing has to be the director.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-hope-ashitey/i-m-very-instinctive-when-i-choose-my-roles-and-usually-the-number/) [Clare-Hope Ashitey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-hope-ashitey/) > [In our house caring about food is pretty instinctive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-harriott/in-our-house-caring-about-food-is-pretty-instinctive/) [Ainsley Harriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-harriott/) > [I'd thought sexuality was instinctive or natural, but it's profoundly linked to inner security and cultural context.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahar-ben-jelloun/i-d-thought-sexuality-was-instinctive-or-natural-but-it-s-profoundly/) [Tahar Ben Jelloun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahar-ben-jelloun/) > [When my heart rate is so high, I seem to be able to play even better, without making bad decisions. It almost switches the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-norrie/when-my-heart-rate-is-so-high-i-seem-to-be-able-to-play-even-better/) [Cameron Norrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-norrie/) > [“The more we're connected to our chosen someone, the more we can pick up what they're feeling. It's instinctive, like breathing." "You can't hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-kagawa/the-more-we-re-connected-to-our-chosen-someone-the-more-we-can-pick/) [Julie Kagawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-kagawa/) > [“The instinctive preference was to read rather than to act. No wonder our actual lives were more or less a shambles”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/the-instinctive-preference-was-to-read-rather-than-to-act-no-wonder/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Some people say, therefore, that violence and war are inevitable. I say rubbish: Our brains are fully capable of controlling instinctive behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-goodall/some-people-say-therefore-that-violence-and-war-are-inevitable-i-say/) [Jane Goodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-goodall/) > [ \[Our understanding is\] not intellectual, but instinctive. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-richards/our-understanding-is-not-intellectual-but-instinctive/) [Ann Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-richards/) ## More by Margaret Millar > [You have what is known as a lot of character, meaning you can be wrong at the top of your lungs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/you-have-what-is-known-as-a-lot-of-character-meaning-you-can-be-wrong/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [Shrews are made, not born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/shrews-are-made-not-born/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [Civilization has imposed countless restrictions and conventions on each of us, with the result that the subconscious in the majority of us has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/civilization-has-imposed-countless-restrictions-and-conventions-on/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [The day will probably come when you can tell everything about a person from his dreams except his age and weight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-day-will-probably-come-when-you-can-tell-everything-about-a/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [the smell of lilacs crept poignantly into the room like a remembered spring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-smell-of-lilacs-crept-poignantly-into-the-room-like-a-remembered/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [Private problems don't constitute an excuse for bad manners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/private-problems-don-t-constitute-an-excuse-for-bad-manners/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [Don't borrow trouble. The interest is too high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/don-t-borrow-trouble-the-interest-is-too-high/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [I wish people would quit telling me to think. I think. Thinking's easy. 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I myself prefer the spark of genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/common-sense-is-a-vastly-overrated-virtue-i-myself-prefer-the-spark/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [I didn't mind giving up carnality, jewelry and red meat in return for comradeship and an afterlife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/i-didn-t-mind-giving-up-carnality-jewelry-and-red-meat-in-return-for/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [You can't drown your troubles ... because troubles can swim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/you-can-t-drown-your-troubles-because-troubles-can-swim/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [The world of maps is nice and flat and simple. It has areas for people and areas for monsters. What a shock it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-world-of-maps-is-nice-and-flat-and-simple-it-has-areas-for-people/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) > [Life is something that happens to you while you're making other plans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/life-is-something-that-happens-to-you-while-you-re-making-other-plans/) [Margaret Millar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) [Explore all 32 Margaret Millar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/) ## More Birth quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The greatest mystery in life is not life itself, but death. Death is the culmination of life, the ultimate blossoming of life. In death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-greatest-mystery-in-life-is-not-life-itself-but-death-death-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [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/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Nirvana is a word that means enlightenment, being beyond the illusion of birth and death, the illusion of pain, the illusion of love, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/nirvana-is-a-word-that-means-enlightenment-being-beyond-the-illusion/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/) [Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) Adam Imad > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) Roxanne Shante > [“A Beautiful verse takes birth when "U"n"I" VERSE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajesh-walecha/a-beautiful-verse-takes-birth-when-u-n-i-verse/) [Rajesh Walecha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajesh-walecha/) > [“There is no born evil, only a corruptible canvas darkened by a formidable perpetrator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/there-is-no-born-evil-only-a-corruptible-canvas-darkened-by-a/) [Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) [Browse all 6,183 Birth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and primitive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Millar" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-instinctive-and-primitive/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Birth" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-instinctive-and-primitive/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e5/margaret-millar-19531_birth_the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-in_624006.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“the emotions at death, as at birth, are instinctive and primitive.” — Margaret Millar", "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": "Margaret Millar", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-millar/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "the emotions at death, as at...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-instinctive-and-primitive/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-millar/the-emotions-at-death-as-at-birth-are-instinctive-and-primitive/#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 } } ] } ```