--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Death is very close, he thought. When you…" description: "\"“Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this manner. I can feel it, he decided. How near I am. Nothing is killing me; I have no enemy, no a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg" --- # Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this… ![“Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this manner. I can feel it, he decided. How near I am. Nothing is killing me; I have no enemy, no antagonist; I am merely expiring, like a magazine subscription: month by month.” quote by Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg) > ““Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this manner. I can feel it, he decided. How near I am. Nothing is killing me; I have no enemy, no antagonist; I am merely expiring, like a magazine subscription: month by month.”” [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects on mortality, feeling life slipping away like a subscription that ends month by month, with no external enemy. **In simple terms:** Life feels like a ticking clock without a clear foe. Key Takeaway Accept mortality and focus on present meaning. Themes existentialism mortality selfreflection Mood philosophical introspective Type literary existential When to use this quote - personal crisis - philosophical contemplation - creative writing Key Concepts impermanence inner conflict nihilism Questions to Reflect On - What does it mean to be your own antagonist? - How can we find purpose amid inevitable decline? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Close Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/close-thought-1022782/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death Close](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-close-552988/) [Decided Near](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decided-near-3507807/) [Near Killing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/near-killing-3507808/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) ## Related quotes > [“We peep out, but what do we see, really? Mirror reflections of our own selves, our bloodless, feeble countenances, devoted to nothing in particular,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/we-peep-out-but-what-do-we-see-really-mirror-reflections-of-our-own/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [Where there's a doctor it's always a bad sign. Even when they are not doing the killing themselves it means a death is close,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/where-there-s-a-doctor-it-s-always-a-bad-sign-even-when-they-are-not/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [The true measure of a man is how he behaves when death is close.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alma-katsu/the-true-measure-of-a-man-is-how-he-behaves-when-death-is-close/) [Alma Katsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alma-katsu/) > [The sudden hand of Death close up mine eye!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/the-sudden-hand-of-death-close-up-mine-eye/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Would words shatter the immensity of life and death so close to one another?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-abulhawa/would-words-shatter-the-immensity-of-life-and-death-so-close-to-one/) [Susan Abulhawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-abulhawa/) > [Death is close enough at hand so we do not need to be afraid of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/death-is-close-enough-at-hand-so-we-do-not-need-to-be-afraid-of-life/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Death is so close, always, a breath away”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/death-is-so-close-always-a-breath-away/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“So close, I thought. A shorter fence, a fatter dog, and everything would be different. But wasn't that always the way. It's never something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/so-close-i-thought-a-shorter-fence-a-fatter-dog-and-everything-would/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [No matter how close thought sticks to the actual, it follows its own rules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/no-matter-how-close-thought-sticks-to-the-actual-it-follows-its-own/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Coming close to what you thought you wanted can help you attain what you never dreamed you could,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-lewis/coming-close-to-what-you-thought-you-wanted-can-help-you-attain-what/) [Sarah Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-lewis/) > [“It made me start to wonderif there were other people so loney so close. I thought about "Eleanor Rigby." It's true, where do they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/it-made-me-start-to-wonderif-there-were-other-people-so-loney-so/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [“People who would be that close to her, she thought, a matter of a few arms' lengths, looking, looking, and they would never know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-vreeland/people-who-would-be-that-close-to-her-she-thought-a-matter-of-a-few/) [Susan Vreeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-vreeland/) > [The most horrific thing about getting close to someone is the thought that at any point, they could lose complete interest in you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blossom/the-most-horrific-thing-about-getting-close-to-someone-is-the-thought/) [Blossom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blossom/) > [“Too close, I thought. There was nothing wrong with fire… as long as you didn't stand too close. Something to keep in mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-fitzpatrick/too-close-i-thought-there-was-nothing-wrong-with-fire-as-long-as-you/) [Becca Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-fitzpatrick/) > [“We were too close, I thought, I'd never been so close to him except in a dream or when he cupped his hand to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-aciman/we-were-too-close-i-thought-i-d-never-been-so-close-to-him-except-in/) [André Aciman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-aciman/) ## More by Philip K. Dick > [So we and our elaborately evolving computers may meet each other halfway. Someday a human being, named perhaps Fred White, may shoot a robot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/so-we-and-our-elaborately-evolving-computers-may-meet-each-other/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [Even if all life on our planet is destroyed, there must be other life somewhere which we know nothing of. It is impossible that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/even-if-all-life-on-our-planet-is-destroyed-there-must-be-other-life/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“That is not how you do it; you do not solve one problem with another, greater problem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/that-is-not-how-you-do-it-you-do-not-solve-one-problem-with-another/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [For each person there is a sentence—a series of words—which has the power to destroy them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/for-each-person-there-is-a-sentence-a-series-of-words-which-has-the/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [I want to write about people I love, and put them into a fictional world spun out of my own mind, not the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/i-want-to-write-about-people-i-love-and-put-them-into-a-fictional/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [Why does a man cry? he wondered. Not like a woman; not for that. Not for sentiment. A man cries over the loss of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/why-does-a-man-cry-he-wondered-not-like-a-woman-not-for-that-not-for/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [The day came. The wrath descended. Sin, guilt, and retribution? The manic psychoses of those entities we referred to as states, institutions, systems -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/the-day-came-the-wrath-descended-sin-guilt-and-retribution-the-manic/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [The church of my choice is the free, open world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/the-church-of-my-choice-is-the-free-open-world/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“I see,' Rick said. He felt numb. Completely. Throughout his entire body.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/i-see-rick-said-he-felt-numb-completely-throughout-his-entire-body/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“What is identity? he asked himself. Where does the act end? Nobody knows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/what-is-identity-he-asked-himself-where-does-the-act-end-nobody-knows/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [You're killing yourself with cynicism. Your idols got taken away from you one by one and now you have nothing to give your love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/you-re-killing-yourself-with-cynicism-your-idols-got-taken-away-from/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [What scared me the most was when my father would put on the gasmask. His face would disappear... This was not a human being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/what-scared-me-the-most-was-when-my-father-would-put-on-the-gasmask/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“A man is an angel that has become deranged, Joe Fernwright thought. Once they – all of them – had been genuine angels, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/a-man-is-an-angel-that-has-become-deranged-joe-fernwright-thought/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [“When do I see a photograph, when a reflection?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/when-do-i-see-a-photograph-when-a-reflection/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [My major preoccupation is the question, 'What is reality?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/my-major-preoccupation-is-the-question-what-is-reality/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) [Explore all 489 Philip K. Dick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this manner. I can feel it, he decided. How near I am. Nothing is killing me; I have no enemy, no antagonist; I am merely expiring, like a magazine subscription: month by month.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Philip K. Dick" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you-think-in-this-manner-i-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you-think-in-this-manner-i-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ea/philip-k-dick-502_death_death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you_388331.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Death is very close, he thought. When you think in this manner. I can feel it, he decided. How near I am…” — Philip K. Dick", "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": "Philip K. Dick", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Death is very close, he thought....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you-think-in-this-manner-i-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/death-is-very-close-he-thought-when-you-think-in-this-manner-i-can/#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 } } ] } ```