--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can't just plain die. You got to do…" description: "\"You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book.\" — Richard McKenna" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png" --- # You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book. ![“You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book.” quote by Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png) > “You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book.” [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. One must face mortality with preparation and adherence to principle, not by reckless abandon. **In simple terms:** Die with purpose, not care. Key Takeaway Plan your end responsibly. Themes mortality responsibility discipline Mood reflective serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - war - dangerous professions - personal crises Key Concepts existentialism ethical conduct Questions to Reflect On - How do you prepare for inevitable endings? - What principles guide your final actions? A Different Perspective Life may end unexpectedly despite planning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Whoever takes just plain ginger ale soon gets drowned out of the conversation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kin-hubbard/whoever-takes-just-plain-ginger-ale-soon-gets-drowned-out-of-the/) [Kin Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kin-hubbard/) > [We're just very much a plain-vanilla, long-only investment fund.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-chandler/we-re-just-very-much-a-plain-vanilla-long-only-investment-fund/) [Richard Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-chandler/) > [Art doesn't transform. It just plain forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-lichtenstein/art-doesn-t-transform-it-just-plain-forms/) [Roy Lichtenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-lichtenstein/) > [People who say cray instead of crazy, are just plain lay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-who-say-cray-instead-of-crazy-are-just-plain-lay/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Take a microphone out of my hands, and I'm just plain folks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willard-scott/take-a-microphone-out-of-my-hands-and-i-m-just-plain-folks/) [Willard Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willard-scott/) > [“just plain weird.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-upton/just-plain-weird/) [Tom Upton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-upton/) > [Give me a mystery - just a plain and simple one - a mystery which is diffidence and silence, a slim little bare-foot mystery:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yevgeny-yevtushenko/give-me-a-mystery-just-a-plain-and-simple-one-a-mystery-which-is/) [Yevgeny Yevtushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yevgeny-yevtushenko/) > [I am just a plain Jew; I mean have no training.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-am-just-a-plain-jew-i-mean-have-no-training/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But you won't be as cute if you're just plain all the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-johnson/but-you-won-t-be-as-cute-if-you-re-just-plain-all-the-time/) [Abigail Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-johnson/) > [Saying cray instead of crazy is just plain lay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/saying-cray-instead-of-crazy-is-just-plain-lay/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ “Just. Plain. \[Fu\*king.\] Grilled. Swordfish.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-schultz/just-plain-fu-king-grilled-swordfish/) [Howard Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-schultz/) > [I ain't flash. I'm just plain old Shaun, the same as I was when I grew up in South London.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaun-wright-phillips/i-ain-t-flash-i-m-just-plain-old-shaun-the-same-as-i-was-when-i-grew/) [Shaun Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaun-wright-phillips/) > [I am just a plain, common man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-ii-of-russia/i-am-just-a-plain-common-man/) Nicholas II of Russia > [Im not rude, I'm just plain honest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anu-malik/im-not-rude-i-m-just-plain-honest/) [Anu Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anu-malik/) > [Nothing can substitute for just plain hard work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-agassi/nothing-can-substitute-for-just-plain-hard-work/) [Andre Agassi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-agassi/) ## More by Richard McKenna > [I am afraid that the ordinary citizen will not like to be told that the banks can and do create and destroy money. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/i-am-afraid-that-the-ordinary-citizen-will-not-like-to-be-told-that/) [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) > [Each man of us is living his own personal work of art, and cannot evade artistic responsibility for his product.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/each-man-of-us-is-living-his-own-personal-work-of-art-and-cannot/) [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) > [My early book learning came to me as naturally as the seasons in … the little town in which I grew up. … Quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/my-early-book-learning-came-to-me-as-naturally-as-the-seasons-in-the/) [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) > [Being dead is being weak and walled off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/being-dead-is-being-weak-and-walled-off/) [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) > [The way to get killed around machinery was to take things for granted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/the-way-to-get-killed-around-machinery-was-to-take-things-for-granted/) [Richard McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) [Explore all 6 Richard McKenna quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard McKenna" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-it-by-the-book/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-it-by-the-book/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d0/richard-mckenna-57471_book_you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-i_1713731.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You can't just plain die. You got to do it by the book.” — Richard McKenna", "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": "Richard McKenna", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-mckenna/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You can't just plain die. You...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-it-by-the-book/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-mckenna/you-can-t-just-plain-die-you-got-to-do-it-by-the-book/#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 } } ] } ```