--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the…" description: "\"“dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.”\" — Natalie Babbitt" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg" --- # dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life. ![“dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.” quote by Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg) > ““dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.”” [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) ## 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 warns that fearing a life unlived is more dangerous than fearing death itself, urging people to live fully. **In simple terms:** It suggests it's worse to miss life experiences than to die. Key Takeaway Prioritize living over fearing death. Themes philosophy life existential motivation Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical encouraging When to use this quote - personal decisions - career choices - creative pursuits Key Concepts meaningful living risk taking Questions to Reflect On - What does “unlived life” mean to you? - How can you act against that fear? A Different Perspective Fear of death can still dominate choices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afraid of death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afraid-of-death/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [Dont be afraid of death, be afraid of an unlived life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate/dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-an-unlived-life/) [Nate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate/) > [Don't be afraid of death, be afraid of an unlived life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-an-unlived-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't be afraid of death; be afraid of an unlived life. You don't have to live forever, you just have to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/don-t-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-an-unlived-life-you-don-t-have/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [Im not afraid of death, Not afraid of heartbreaks, Not afraid of crying, Not afraid of sadness nor sorrow. But one thing I fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aarav-islam-jebz/im-not-afraid-of-death-not-afraid-of-heartbreaks-not-afraid-of-crying/) [Aarav Islam Jebz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aarav-islam-jebz/) > [I am not afraid of death. What I am afraid of is that I will meet the Saviour and He will say, 'You could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-w-kimball/i-am-not-afraid-of-death-what-i-am-afraid-of-is-that-i-will-meet-the/) [Spencer W. Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-w-kimball/) > [I'm not afraid of death but I am afraid of dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-jarman/i-m-not-afraid-of-death-but-i-am-afraid-of-dying/) [Derek Jarman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-jarman/) > [It's not that I'm afraid of death, but afraid of the thought of my people laid to rest; They saying there is 6 million…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-not-that-i-m-afraid-of-death-but-afraid-of-the-thought-of-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not afraid of death. I'm not afraid of anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bray-wyatt/i-m-not-afraid-of-death-i-m-not-afraid-of-anything/) [Bray Wyatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bray-wyatt/) > [If you are afraid of death, be afraid. The point is to get with it, to let it take over - fear, ghosts, pains,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/if-you-are-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-the-point-is-to-get-with-it-to/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [“The recruit who reports for active duty at the beginning of the war can in some instances be afraid of death, but more often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/the-recruit-who-reports-for-active-duty-at-the-beginning-of-the-war/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [“I am not afraid of death , i am afraid of being alive when it happens to you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haritha-velpureddy/i-am-not-afraid-of-death-i-am-afraid-of-being-alive-when-it-happens/) [Haritha Velpureddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haritha-velpureddy/) > [“No one is afraid of death though, everyone is afraid of the process of dying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-madderson/no-one-is-afraid-of-death-though-everyone-is-afraid-of-the-process-of/) John Madderson > [It would be an exaggeration to say I’m not afraid of death, but I’m not afraid of what comes after, because I’m not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-de-duve/it-would-be-an-exaggeration-to-say-i-m-not-afraid-of-death-but-i-m/) [Christian de Duve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-de-duve/) > [“Are you not afraid of death?' I am not in the least afraid!... I would rather die than drink that bitter medicine.' At that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-collodi/are-you-not-afraid-of-death-i-am-not-in-the-least-afraid-i-would/) [Carlo Collodi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-collodi/) > [“I'm not afraid of death…I'm afraid of life without you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-woon/i-m-not-afraid-of-death-i-m-afraid-of-life-without-you/) [Yvonne Woon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-woon/) ## More by Natalie Babbitt > [Like all magnificent things, it's very simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/like-all-magnificent-things-it-s-very-simple/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“He knows you?” said Mae, her frown deepening. “But you didn’t call out to him, child. Why not?” “I was too scared to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/he-knows-you-said-mae-her-frown-deepening-but-you-didn-t-call-out-to/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“He wasn't crazy. How could he be? He was just -- amazing. But she was struck dumb. All she could do was stare at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/he-wasn-t-crazy-how-could-he-be-he-was-just-amazing-but-she-was/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [My mother was an artist, and I was fairly good at art as a child. I was always the best drawer in class, except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/my-mother-was-an-artist-and-i-was-fairly-good-at-art-as-a-child-i-was/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [Do not fear death... only the unlived life. You don't have to live forever; You just have to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/do-not-fear-death-only-the-unlived-life-you-don-t-have-to-live/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“You can't have living without dying. So you can't call it living, what we got. We just are, we just be, like rocks beside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/you-can-t-have-living-without-dying-so-you-can-t-call-it-living-what/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“I’m not exactly sure what I’d do, you know, but something interesting—something that’s all mine. Something that would make some kind of difference in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/i-m-not-exactly-sure-what-i-d-do-you-know-but-something-interesting/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“Miles said softly, “Ma. We’ll get you out right away.” “Sure, Ma,” said Jesse. “Don’t worry about me none,” said Mae in the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/miles-said-softly-ma-we-ll-get-you-out-right-away-sure-ma-said-jesse/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [But dying's part of the wheel, right there next to being born. You can't pick out the pieces you like and leave the rest.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/but-dying-s-part-of-the-wheel-right-there-next-to-being-born-you-can/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“There’s a pretty good old rowboat. I’ll take you out for a row after supper.” “No, I will,” said Jesse. “Let me . I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/there-s-a-pretty-good-old-rowboat-i-ll-take-you-out-for-a-row-after/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [Don't be afraid of death; be afraid of an unlived life. You don't have to live forever, you just have to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/don-t-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-an-unlived-life-you-don-t-have/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [Readers are lucky - they will never be bored or lonely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/readers-are-lucky-they-will-never-be-bored-or-lonely/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [“...with white dawns and glaring moons, and sunsets smeared with too much color.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/with-white-dawns-and-glaring-moons-and-sunsets-smeared-with-too-much/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [in reading ... stories, you can be many different people in many different places, doing things you would never have a chance to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/in-reading-stories-you-can-be-many-different-people-in-many-different/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) > [Time is like a wheel. Turning and turning - never stopping. And the woods are the center; the hub of the wheel. It began…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/time-is-like-a-wheel-turning-and-turning-never-stopping-and-the-woods/) [Natalie Babbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) [Explore all 90 Natalie Babbitt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/) ## More Afraid of death 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/) > [To me, man means awareness of death. I am not saying become afraid of death; that is not awareness. Just be aware of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/to-me-man-means-awareness-of-death-i-am-not-saying-become-afraid-of/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“So long as you believe yourself to be 'only human' you have accepted life in a prison cell whose door remains locked only by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-nordby/so-long-as-you-believe-yourself-to-be-only-human-you-have-accepted/) [Jacob Nordby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-nordby/) > [“I truly believe I am not afraid of death. What I shrink from, I believe, is the shame of dying as stupid and befuddled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-truly-believe-i-am-not-afraid-of-death-what-i-shrink-from-i-believe/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [“As she fell, Esther wasn’t worried about being blown off course and plummeting into the rocks below. She wasn’t worried about hitting the shallows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-sutherland/as-she-fell-esther-wasn-t-worried-about-being-blown-off-course-and/) [Krystal Sutherland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-sutherland/) > [I am afraid of death, scared by it. I already don't know whether I exist or not. So dying really terrifies me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-rea/i-am-afraid-of-death-scared-by-it-i-already-don-t-know-whether-i/) [Stephen Rea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-rea/) > [“I'm not afraid of death…I'm afraid of life without you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-woon/i-m-not-afraid-of-death-i-m-afraid-of-life-without-you/) [Yvonne Woon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-woon/) > [Atheism is a fairy story for people afraid of the Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennox/atheism-is-a-fairy-story-for-people-afraid-of-the-light/) [John Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennox/) > [ “Dear Mr. Fraser, I write to inform you that I shall not visit Helwater this quarter; official affairs detain me. \[…\] These affairs concern… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/dear-mr-fraser-i-write-to-inform-you-that-i-shall-not-visit-helwater/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [It is important that our relationship with farm animals is reciprocal. We owe animals a decent life and a painless death. I have observed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/it-is-important-that-our-relationship-with-farm-animals-is-reciprocal/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [Do you have any coffee?'...'It stunts my growth, and I'm afraid of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/do-you-have-any-coffee-it-stunts-my-growth-and-i-m-afraid-of-death/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [Once you are afraid of death you are bound to be afraid of life. That's why I am talking about this Hasidic approach. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-you-are-afraid-of-death-you-are-bound-to-be-afraid-of-life-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“the less a man is acquainted with the sweets of life, the less reason he has to be afraid of death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flavius-vegetius-renatus/the-less-a-man-is-acquainted-with-the-sweets-of-life-the-less-reason/) [Flavius Vegetius Renatus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flavius-vegetius-renatus/) > [“I am not afraid of death, which after all can't be far away. What does frighten me, though, is the halfway stage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie-thomas/i-am-not-afraid-of-death-which-after-all-can-t-be-far-away-what-does/) [Rosie Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie-thomas/) > [“I am not afraid of death , i am afraid of being alive when it happens to you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haritha-velpureddy/i-am-not-afraid-of-death-i-am-afraid-of-being-alive-when-it-happens/) [Haritha Velpureddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haritha-velpureddy/) [Browse all 185 Afraid of death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afraid-of-death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Natalie Babbitt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the-unlived-life/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Afraid of death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the-unlived-life/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ed/natalie-babbitt-7335_afraid-of-death_dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the_3133117.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“dont be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.” — Natalie Babbitt", "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": "Natalie Babbitt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-babbitt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“dont be afraid of death, be...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the-unlived-life/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-babbitt/dont-be-afraid-of-death-be-afraid-of-the-unlived-life/#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 } } ] } ```