--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In America they really do mythologise…" description: "\"In America they really do mythologise people when they die.\" — Robin Williams" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg" --- # In America they really do mythologise people when they die. ![“In America they really do mythologise people when they die.” quote by Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg) > “In America they really do mythologise people when they die.” [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It observes that American culture tends to elevate the deceased into legendary status, often simplifying their lives into heroic narratives. **In simple terms:** American mythologizing of the dead Key Takeaway Cultural memory reshapes reality Themes celebration memory culture heroism narrative Mood reflective critical Type observation cultural critique When to use this quote - obituaries - memorials - public funerals - media retrospectives Key Concepts mythmaking collective identity legacy Practical Applications - historical analysis - media studies Questions to Reflect On - How does mythologizing affect our understanding of history? - What are the consequences of simplifying complex lives? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [America Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america-really-578462/) [Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/die/) [Mythologise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mythologise-689813/) [Mythologise People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mythologise-people-689811/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [Really Mythologise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-mythologise-689812/) ## Related quotes > [The great thing about America is that people take its history and mythologise it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/the-great-thing-about-america-is-that-people-take-its-history-and/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [All children mythologise their birth. It is a universal trait. You want to know someone? Heart, mind and soul? Ask him to tell you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-setterfield/all-children-mythologise-their-birth-it-is-a-universal-trait-you-want/) [Diane Setterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-setterfield/) > [What Westerns did was to take a world and mythologise it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/what-westerns-did-was-to-take-a-world-and-mythologise-it/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [“I have great hopes that we shall learn in due time how to emotionalise and mythologise their science to such an extent that what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/i-have-great-hopes-that-we-shall-learn-in-due-time-how-to/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [In America, they really do mythologize people when they die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologize-people-when-they-die/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [ That's what we \[outsiders\] feel America is really about - the kind of crazed ravings of the Christian right - when it's probably something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/that-s-what-we-outsiders-feel-america-is-really-about-the-kind-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I'm not sure if men really understand this, but I don't think there's a woman in America who really expects her life to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-romney/i-m-not-sure-if-men-really-understand-this-but-i-don-t-think-there-s/) [Ann Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-romney/) > [I think America is really well-positioned, because we do train people to be creative and sometimes resist authority, which helps in being an innovator.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/i-think-america-is-really-well-positioned-because-we-do-train-people/) [Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/) > [What America really needs is a long-term bill that makes significant investments in our transportation infrastructure and reforms the highway trust fund to ensure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-quigley/what-america-really-needs-is-a-long-term-bill-that-makes-significant/) [Mike Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-quigley/) > [I don't think that people in America are really given enough information about the Third World.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sheen/i-don-t-think-that-people-in-america-are-really-given-enough/) [Martin Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sheen/) > [Coming from the U.K., you realize how quiet England is, and as soon as you get to America, it's really big and brash and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-howard/coming-from-the-u-k-you-realize-how-quiet-england-is-and-as-soon-as/) [Ben Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-howard/) > [Mumford & Sons' music appeals to a lot of America. I'm really proud of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-goulding/mumford-sons-music-appeals-to-a-lot-of-america-i-m-really-proud-of/) [Ellie Goulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-goulding/) > [I saw in Chicago, on the street where I was visiting my sister-in-law, this "Urban Renewal" and it means one thing: "Negro removal." But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/i-saw-in-chicago-on-the-street-where-i-was-visiting-my-sister-in-law/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [“America’s not really a melting pot. It’s more like one of those divided metal plates with separate sections for starch, meat, and veggies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-yoon/america-s-not-really-a-melting-pot-it-s-more-like-one-of-those/) [Nicola Yoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-yoon/) > [You don't hear that much about me being a white and singing soul music in England, but I get the feeling that in America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/you-don-t-hear-that-much-about-me-being-a-white-and-singing-soul/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) ## More by Robin Williams > [On stage you're free. You can say and do things that if you said and did any place else, you'd be arrested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/on-stage-you-re-free-you-can-say-and-do-things-that-if-you-said-and/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Humor is a great defense, and an offense too. Usually the recipient isn't too happy about it, but the people around are laughing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/humor-is-a-great-defense-and-an-offense-too-usually-the-recipient-isn/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [What's wrong with death sir? What are we so mortally afraid of? Why can't we treat death with a certain amount of humanity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/what-s-wrong-with-death-sir-what-are-we-so-mortally-afraid-of-why-can/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/spring-is-nature-s-way-of-saying-let-s-party/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I had sex with a prostitute when I was 21, I was so bad, she gave me a refund.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-had-sex-with-a-prostitute-when-i-was-21-i-was-so-bad-she-gave-me-a/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [We were talking briefly about cocaine... yeah. Anything that makes you paranoid and impotent, give me more of that!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/we-were-talking-briefly-about-cocaine-yeah-anything-that-makes-you/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I always thought the idea of education was to learn to think for yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-always-thought-the-idea-of-education-was-to-learn-to-think-for/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I was a serious method actor until I visited this site.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-was-a-serious-method-actor-until-i-visited-this-site/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I'm history! No, I'm mythology! Nah, I don't care what I am, I'm free!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-m-history-no-i-m-mythology-nah-i-don-t-care-what-i-am-i-m-free/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [But only in their dreams can men be truly free. It was always thus and always thus will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/but-only-in-their-dreams-can-men-be-truly-free-it-was-always-thus-and/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [People say satire is dead. It's not dead; it's alive and living in the White House.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/people-say-satire-is-dead-it-s-not-dead-it-s-alive-and-living-in-the/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [For me, comedy starts as a spew, a kind of explosion, and then you sculpt it from there, if at all. It comes out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/for-me-comedy-starts-as-a-spew-a-kind-of-explosion-and-then-you/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Carpe per diem - seize the check.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/carpe-per-diem-seize-the-check/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [Cable is not bound because people pay for it. It's literally a choice, that's the operative word. If you don't like the language, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/cable-is-not-bound-because-people-pay-for-it-it-s-literally-a-choice/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) > [I was once walking in an airport and a woman came up to me and said, 'Be zany!'. That'd be like walking up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/i-was-once-walking-in-an-airport-and-a-woman-came-up-to-me-and-said/) [Robin Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) [Explore all 413 Robin Williams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [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/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In America they really do mythologise people when they die.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robin Williams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-people-when-they-die/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "America" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-people-when-they-die/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b6a/robin-williams-682_america_in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-pe_47625.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In America they really do mythologise people when they die.” — Robin Williams", "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": "Robin Williams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-williams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In America they really do mythologise...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-people-when-they-die/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-williams/in-america-they-really-do-mythologise-people-when-they-die/#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 } } ] } ```