--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You will not be remembered if you die…" description: "\"“You will not be remembered if you die now. You will be buried and mourned by a few, and what more can you ask for. But you feel so tremendously alone,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e80/nick-mcdonell-28508_camus_you-will-not-be-remembered-if-you-die-no_2466495.jpg" --- # You will not be remembered if you die now. You will be… ![“You will not be remembered if you die now. You will be buried and mourned by a few, and what more can you ask for. But you feel so tremendously alone, because you fear that your blood is not strong or good and your friends are few and embattled too. But so what. That is the answer. So what so what…” quote by Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e80/nick-mcdonell-28508_camus_you-will-not-be-remembered-if-you-die-no_2466495.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e80/nick-mcdonell-28508_camus_you-will-not-be-remembered-if-you-die-no_2466495.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e80/nick-mcdonell-28508_camus_you-will-not-be-remembered-if-you-die-no_2466495.jpg) > ““You will not be remembered if you die now. You will be buried and mourned by a few, and what more can you ask for. But you feel so tremendously alone, because you fear that your blood is not strong or good and your friends are few and embattled too. But so what. That is the answer. So what so what so what so what so what so what so what. The world will spiral out from underneath you, and you will find nothing to hold on to because you are either too smart or too dumb to find God, and because what the fuck will Camus ever do for you? Just ideas. You are not an artist, you will not leave something behind. Maybe you are angry only because the way out is through love and you are horny and lonely. And she’s dead, of course. Maybe this is the way it is for everybody, only you are weaker, or less lucky, or have seen something they all have not. You have seen that before you lies a great stretch of road, and it is windswept or blasted by the hot sun or covered in snow, or it is dirt or concrete or shrouded in darkness or bright and clear so you have to squint, but no matter what, it is utterly empty.”” [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects existential despair, feeling isolated, questioning purpose, and confronting the emptiness of existence despite seeking meaning through love or art. **In simple terms:** Feeling alone and questioning life's purpose. Key Takeaway Acknowledge emptiness, seek authentic connection. Themes existential loneliness purpose despair search for meaning Mood melancholic introspective despairing Type philosophical existential literary When to use this quote - grief counseling - creative writing - philosophical discussion - nighttime reflection - personal journaling Key Concepts nihilism absurdism alienation authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What gives you a sense of purpose when external validation fails? - How can you transform loneliness into creative energy? A Different Perspective The view may overlook resilience and the capacity for meaning creation beyond external validation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hot sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hot-sun/) ## Related quotes > [“White Mike was a thinker, his teachers said. This is what he was thinking as he watched his mother's coffin being lowered into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/white-mike-was-a-thinker-his-teachers-said-this-is-what-he-was/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“As one tends to the graves of the dead, so I tend the books. I clean them, do minor repairs, keep them in good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/as-one-tends-to-the-graves-of-the-dead-so-i-tend-the-books-i-clean/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“Sundays, like a stanza break Or shower's end of all applause, For some old unexplaining sake The optimistic tread these shores, As lonely as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glyn-maxwell/sundays-like-a-stanza-break-or-shower-s-end-of-all-applause-for-some/) Glyn Maxwell > [Welcome to my world lonely, dead, unforgotten, unwanted, ~Mie~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/massie-moxley/welcome-to-my-world-lonely-dead-unforgotten-unwanted-mie/) [Massie Moxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/massie-moxley/) > [For it must be very lonely being dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/for-it-must-be-very-lonely-being-dead/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [“I'll live to be one year younger, because I can't stand the idea of a world without you in it, and die buried beneath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-olsen/i-ll-live-to-be-one-year-younger-because-i-can-t-stand-the-idea-of-a/) [Lance Olsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-olsen/) > [Unexpected emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/unexpected-emotions-will-never-die-they-are-buried-alive-and-will/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/entreat-me-not-to-leave-you-or-to-turn-back-from-following-after-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Where you go, I shall go; where you die, I shall die, and there will I be buried.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosamund-hodge/where-you-go-i-shall-go-where-you-die-i-shall-die-and-there-will-i-be/) [Rosamund Hodge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosamund-hodge/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“Truth does not die because you buried it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/truth-does-not-die-because-you-buried-it/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [The soil out of which such men as he are made is good to be born on, good to live on, good to die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-soil-out-of-which-such-men-as-he-are-made-is-good-to-be-born-on/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [“A seed does not die because you buried it; neither does a warrior.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/a-seed-does-not-die-because-you-buried-it-neither-does-a-warrior/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [“Be forgetful, disgraceful, drunk in love. Be notorious, wild, crazy in love. Fall, die, be buried in love— and rise as a lord in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafy-rohaan/be-forgetful-disgraceful-drunk-in-love-be-notorious-wild-crazy-in/) Rafy Rohaan > [“The Myth of Sisyphus makes us wonder if we too are like the ones who are so distracted making friends with important people, staying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-morrison/the-myth-of-sisyphus-makes-us-wonder-if-we-too-are-like-the-ones-who/) [Jon Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-morrison/) ## More by Nick McDonell > [The more I have written, the less it has been about exploring myself, and the more it has been about exploring the world around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/the-more-i-have-written-the-less-it-has-been-about-exploring-myself/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I'm interested in illuminating the enormous disparity between vast poverty and the tiny upper class... This vast inequity is unfair by definition, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-m-interested-in-illuminating-the-enormous-disparity-between-vast/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“Everyone knows what a penny dropped form the top of the Empire State Building can do. So if it started to rain pennies, millions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/everyone-knows-what-a-penny-dropped-form-the-top-of-the-empire-state/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“Because really, when you get down on your knees on the pew, you’re just giving God a blow job.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/because-really-when-you-get-down-on-your-knees-on-the-pew-you-re-just/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I knew I loved writing, and I was raised by people who love books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-knew-i-loved-writing-and-i-was-raised-by-people-who-love-books/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I'm not good enough to write about my friends, who are all brilliant and sophisticated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-m-not-good-enough-to-write-about-my-friends-who-are-all-brilliant/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“The world will spiral out from underneath you, and you will find nothing to hold on to because you are either too smart or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/the-world-will-spiral-out-from-underneath-you-and-you-will-find/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I know that I work hard for the things that I do, and I really go to the places that I report on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-know-that-i-work-hard-for-the-things-that-i-do-and-i-really-go-to/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“Fiindca toata lumea are o notiune exacta despre cum trebuie sa traiasca..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/fiindca-toata-lumea-are-o-notiune-exacta-despre-cum-trebuie-sa/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I'm terrified of getting what I'm not deserving of, feeling that I've got something for nothing... at the expense of brilliant starving writers all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-m-terrified-of-getting-what-i-m-not-deserving-of-feeling-that-i-ve/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I was brought up to believe you should always live the most interesting life you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-was-brought-up-to-believe-you-should-always-live-the-most/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“White Mike was a thinker, his teachers said. This is what he was thinking as he watched his mother's coffin being lowered into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/white-mike-was-a-thinker-his-teachers-said-this-is-what-he-was/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [Someone once accused me of slumming. I don't know what that means. I play basketball. And through that, I get to see a world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/someone-once-accused-me-of-slumming-i-don-t-know-what-that-means-i/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [“What do you want? Because if you don’t want something, you’ve got nothing. You are adrift, you are washed away, and then buried under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/what-do-you-want-because-if-you-don-t-want-something-you-ve-got/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) > [I played football; I was a running back, and I took a hit, and I had a hairline fracture in my leg which no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-mcdonell/i-played-football-i-was-a-running-back-and-i-took-a-hit-and-i-had-a/) [Nick McDonell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) [Explore all 19 Nick McDonell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-mcdonell/) ## More Camus quotes > [“The Myth of Sisyphus makes us wonder if we too are like the ones who are so distracted making friends with important people, staying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-morrison/the-myth-of-sisyphus-makes-us-wonder-if-we-too-are-like-the-ones-who/) [Jon Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-morrison/) > [“In every guilty man, there is an element of innocence. This is what makes any absolute condemnation revolting. We do not think enough about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-zaretsky/in-every-guilty-man-there-is-an-element-of-innocence-this-is-what/) [Robert Zaretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-zaretsky/) > [ I couldn't ever act or think on behalf of what my father \[\[Albert Camus\]\] would have said or done. He's an artist, he considers… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/i-couldn-t-ever-act-or-think-on-behalf-of-what-my-father-albert-camus/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [“I shall tell you a great secret my friend. Do not wait for the last judgement, it takes place every day. —Albert Camus”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-d-price/i-shall-tell-you-a-great-secret-my-friend-do-not-wait-for-the-last/) [Steven D. Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-d-price/) > [ We can't talk about the book \[Albert Camus\] wanted to write because we have barely its beginnings. He had written hardly any of it,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/we-can-t-talk-about-the-book-albert-camus-wanted-to-write-because-we/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [“A sweeping vista of Northern sky opens up between the warehouses and hangs motionless above the cobbled streets. It’s a world of unrequited love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-schiller/a-sweeping-vista-of-northern-sky-opens-up-between-the-warehouses-and/) Neil Schiller > [“Rats died in the street; men in their homes. And newspapers are concerned only with the street.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/rats-died-in-the-street-men-in-their-homes-and-newspapers-are/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Camus says in 'The Stranger' that reason is the enemy of imagination. Sometimes you have to put reason aside and make something beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-niemeyer/camus-says-in-the-stranger-that-reason-is-the-enemy-of-imagination/) [Oscar Niemeyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-niemeyer/) > [“Life is a sum of all your choices,” wrote Albert Camus. Large or small, our actions forge our futures, hopefully inspiring others along the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-schultz/life-is-a-sum-of-all-your-choices-wrote-albert-camus-large-or-small/) [Howard Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-schultz/) > [“La lucha por llegar a las cumbres basta para llenar un corazón de hombre. Hay que imaginarse a Sísifo feliz.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/la-lucha-por-llegar-a-las-cumbres-basta-para-llenar-un-coraz-n-de/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Albert Camus was never abandoned by his readers. Camus is enormously read. He's the highest selling author in the entire Gallimard collection, and has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-was-never-abandoned-by-his-readers-camus-is-enormously/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [ \[Albert Camus\] was not an existentialist! ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-was-not-an-existentialist/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [“Es más fácil matar a quién no se conoce.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/es-m-s-f-cil-matar-a-qui-n-no-se-conoce/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [ \[Albert\] Camus' was born in Algeria of French nationality, and was assimilated into the French colony, although the French colonists rejected him absolutely because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-was-born-in-algeria-of-french-nationality-and-was/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [“Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal,” says Albert Camus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-marchenko/nobody-realizes-that-some-people-expend-tremendous-energy-merely-to-2/) [Gillian Marchenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-marchenko/) Browse all 61 Camus quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“You will not be remembered if you die now. You will be buried and mourned by a few, and what more can you ask for. But you feel so tremendously alone, because you fear that your blood is not strong or good and your friends are few and embattled too. But so what. That is the answer. So what so what so what so what so what so what so what. The world will spiral out from underneath you, and you will find nothing to hold on to because you are either too smart or too dumb to find God, and because what the fuck will Camus ever do for you? Just ideas. You are not an artist, you will not leave something behind. Maybe you are angry only because the way out is through love and you are horny and lonely. And she’s dead, of course. Maybe this is the way it is for everybody, only you are weaker, or less lucky, or have seen something they all have not. 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