--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We must have hope or starve to death." description: "\"We must have hope or starve to death.\" — Pearl S. Buck" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/pearl-s-buck-1024_death_we-must-have-hope-or-starve-to-death-441_441308.png" --- # We must have hope or starve to death. ![“We must have hope or starve to death.” quote by Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/pearl-s-buck-1024_death_we-must-have-hope-or-starve-to-death-441_441308.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/pearl-s-buck-1024_death_we-must-have-hope-or-starve-to-death-441_441308.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/pearl-s-buck-1024_death_we-must-have-hope-or-starve-to-death-441_441308.png) > “We must have hope or starve to death.” [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hope is essential for survival; without it, one metaphor with metaphor and.. **In simple terms:** Hope is necessary to live. Key Takeaway Hold onto hope. Themes hope survival resilience Mood determined inspirational Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - mental health - crisis coping - personal adversity Key Concepts psychology motivation Questions to Reflect On - How do you sustain hope during hardship? - What actions accompany your hope? A Different Perspective Hope alone may not solve problems; action is also required. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Having hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-hope/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [Life without idealism is empty indeed. We just hope or starve to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/life-without-idealism-is-empty-indeed-we-just-hope-or-starve-to-death/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [When there is not enough to eat, people starve to death. It is better to let half of the people die so that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mao-zedong/when-there-is-not-enough-to-eat-people-starve-to-death-it-is-better/) [Mao Zedong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mao-zedong/) > [I would rather die in freedom on my way back home than starve to death here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morning-star/i-would-rather-die-in-freedom-on-my-way-back-home-than-starve-to/) [Morning Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morning-star/) > [“District Twelve. Where you can starve to death in safety,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/district-twelve-where-you-can-starve-to-death-in-safety/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [I'll starve to death before I'll cook for myself. I think I could survive a week without eating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-fox/i-ll-starve-to-death-before-i-ll-cook-for-myself-i-think-i-could/) [Megan Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-fox/) > [I am confident that as an artist, I will never starve to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-agarwal/i-am-confident-that-as-an-artist-i-will-never-starve-to-death/) [Divya Agarwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-agarwal/) > [“Jewish vampires: Starve me to death? Seriously? Then what?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasha-turner/jewish-vampires-starve-me-to-death-seriously-then-what/) [Tasha Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasha-turner/) > [I used to starve myself to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-jedrzejczyk/i-used-to-starve-myself-to-death/) [Joanna Jedrzejczyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-jedrzejczyk/) > [“You're just another one of those disconnected, easily angered zombies who haven't really worked a day in their lives. Always eager to tell other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-vega/you-re-just-another-one-of-those-disconnected-easily-angered-zombies/) [Caspar Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-vega/) > [“What would I do without you?’ I thought for a moment. ‘Starve to death, my lady. In the dark.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-e-kinsey/what-would-i-do-without-you-i-thought-for-a-moment-starve-to-death-my/) [T E Kinsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-e-kinsey/) > [People don't ever have to starve to death; there are solutions. We have failed if we can't eradicate hunger in Africa and Ethiopia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coretta-scott-king/people-don-t-ever-have-to-starve-to-death-there-are-solutions-we-have/) [Coretta Scott King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coretta-scott-king/) > [If you no longer have any income, you will not be neglected-you will not starve to death. . . . We panic at first,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-de-paul/if-you-no-longer-have-any-income-you-will-not-be-neglected-you-will/) [Vincent de Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-de-paul/) > [The most dreadful thing of all is that many millions of people in the poor countries are going to starve to death before our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-p-snow/the-most-dreadful-thing-of-all-is-that-many-millions-of-people-in-the/) [C.P. Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-p-snow/) > [Feed your faith and your fears will starve to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renceray-brown/feed-your-faith-and-your-fears-will-starve-to-death/) Renceray Brown > [District 12: Where you can starve to death in safety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/district-12-where-you-can-starve-to-death-in-safety/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) ## More by Pearl S. Buck > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Hunger makes a thief of any man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/hunger-makes-a-thief-of-any-man/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [War is the most devastating endemic and epidemic disease the human race has to endure, and yet too little has been done to discover…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/war-is-the-most-devastating-endemic-and-epidemic-disease-the-human/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [In our changing world nothing changes more than geography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/in-our-changing-world-nothing-changes-more-than-geography/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [No one really understood music unless he was a scientist, her father had declared, and not just a scientist, either, oh, no, only the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/no-one-really-understood-music-unless-he-was-a-scientist-her-father/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Upon the profound discontent of the young in every country do I set my faith. I beg you, the young, to be discontented. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/upon-the-profound-discontent-of-the-young-in-every-country-do-i-set/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Wang Lung sat smoking, thinking of the silver as it had lain upon the table. It had come out of the earth, this silver,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/wang-lung-sat-smoking-thinking-of-the-silver-as-it-had-lain-upon-the/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/the-secret-of-joy-in-work-is-contained-in-one-word-excellence-to-know/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/if-our-american-way-of-life-fails-the-child-it-fails-us-all/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Mind and body were well or ill together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/mind-and-body-were-well-or-ill-together/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“U meni postoji mjesto gdje živim posve sama; tu obnavljam svoja proljeća koja nikad ne presahnu”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/u-meni-postoji-mjesto-gdje-ivim-posve-sama-tu-obnavljam-svoja-prolje/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Brave young American men climbed the rugged slopes of Korean mountains and fought in homesickness and desperate weariness for the sake of a people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/brave-young-american-men-climbed-the-rugged-slopes-of-korean/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [Truth is always exciting. Speak it, then; life is dull without it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/truth-is-always-exciting-speak-it-then-life-is-dull-without-it/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“All scientific effort must now be concentrated in the area of defence (sic). We have learned our lesson. We, the most civilized of people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/all-scientific-effort-must-now-be-concentrated-in-the-area-of-defence/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [to know how to read is to light a lamp in the mind, to release the soul from prison, to open a gate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/to-know-how-to-read-is-to-light-a-lamp-in-the-mind-to-release-the/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) [Explore all 304 Pearl S. Buck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [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 do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) J. Anthony Torino > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) Alan W. Powers > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We must have hope or starve to death.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pearl S. 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