--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Today, however, we are having a hard time…" description: "\"Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death.\" — Simone de Beauvoir" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg" --- # Today, however, we are having a hard time living because… ![“Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death.” quote by Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg) > “Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death.” [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Our obsession with outsmarting death creates a difficult, strained existence. **In simple terms:** Focusing on death makes life harder. Key Takeaway Embrace life rather than fearing death. Themes mortality existence anxiety Mood reflective serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - healthcare - elder care - philosophical counseling Key Concepts existentialism psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does fear of death shape your choices? - What practices help you live fully? A Different Perspective Avoiding death entirely is impossible; balance is needed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bent/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Existential](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existential/) [Existentialism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existentialism/) [Hard time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-time/) [Hard times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-times/) [Having a hard time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-a-hard-time/) [Having Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/having-hard-383682/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Living Bent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-bent-577654/) [Outwitting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outwitting/) [Outwitting Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outwitting-death-577652/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Today Having](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today-having-577653/) ## Related quotes > [“Believe me when I say I won’t have sex with you like this. I would never disrespect you so much as to not make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ashley/believe-me-when-i-say-i-won-t-have-sex-with-you-like-this-i-would/) [Katie Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ashley/) > [Find someone who is having a hard time or is ill or lonely, and do something for him or her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/find-someone-who-is-having-a-hard-time-or-is-ill-or-lonely-and-do/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [“I am having a hard time throwing off the skin that I pick and peel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-schutz/i-am-having-a-hard-time-throwing-off-the-skin-that-i-pick-and-peel/) [Samantha Schutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-schutz/) > [When you become rich and famous and you get a lot of attention, very few people get to go through that cycle without having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-cutrone/when-you-become-rich-and-famous-and-you-get-a-lot-of-attention-very/) [Kelly Cutrone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-cutrone/) > [When your friend is having a hard time, you should be there for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/when-your-friend-is-having-a-hard-time-you-should-be-there-for-him/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [Golf doesn't look like it's going to be that hard, but then you start to do it and you realize, 'Wow, this isn't that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cub-swanson/golf-doesn-t-look-like-it-s-going-to-be-that-hard-but-then-you-start/) [Cub Swanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cub-swanson/) > [You’re not the one having a hard time in the battlefield. The enemy’s also having a hard time—the only question is who breaks down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-eitan/you-re-not-the-one-having-a-hard-time-in-the-battlefield-the-enemy-s/) [Rafael Eitan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-eitan/) > [“I like you, Killer, and not just in my bed. I’ve never been with a woman who has made me want more than that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-abel/i-like-you-killer-and-not-just-in-my-bed-i-ve-never-been-with-a-woman/) [E.M. Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-abel/) > [One of the biggest things I learned was that it's OK to be nervous and admit that you're having a hard time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-larsen/one-of-the-biggest-things-i-learned-was-that-it-s-ok-to-be-nervous/) [Samuel Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-larsen/) > [I've had sex four times this week I'll explain, having a hard time adjusting to fame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/i-ve-had-sex-four-times-this-week-i-ll-explain-having-a-hard-time/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [“No girl has ever had this effect on me! She's taking up so much of my attention, I'm having a hard time smoking cigarettes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-marshall/no-girl-has-ever-had-this-effect-on-me-she-s-taking-up-so-much-of-my/) [James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-marshall/) > [“Many times, when I was having a hard time with one of my children, God would always remind me that He was having a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-tremendous-jones/many-times-when-i-was-having-a-hard-time-with-one-of-my-children-god/) [Charlie "Tremendous" Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-tremendous-jones/) > [I don't think that having a hard time is inherently negative. I think that it can make you a stronger person; it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiernan-shipka/i-don-t-think-that-having-a-hard-time-is-inherently-negative-i-think/) [Kiernan Shipka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiernan-shipka/) > [God seemed to be having a hard time killing him, and he'd be damned if he was going to make the job easy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-puzo/god-seemed-to-be-having-a-hard-time-killing-him-and-he-d-be-damned-if/) [Mario Puzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-puzo/) > [I'm having a hard time trying to figure out how to say things. I'm a little exhausted by the process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-vedder/i-m-having-a-hard-time-trying-to-figure-out-how-to-say-things-i-m-a/) [Eddie Vedder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-vedder/) ## More by Simone de Beauvoir > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/one-is-not-born-a-genius-one-becomes-a-genius-and-the-feminine/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Many things would be changed for Americans if they would only admit that there is ill-luck in this world and that misfortune is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/many-things-would-be-changed-for-americans-if-they-would-only-admit/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“You said something very true the other day: that for us, nudity begins with the face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/you-said-something-very-true-the-other-day-that-for-us-nudity-begins/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Ženama se ne rađamo, nego postajemo”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/enama-se-ne-ra-amo-nego-postajemo/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Life is occupied in both perpetuating itself and in surpassing itself; if all it does is maintain itself, then living is only not dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/life-is-occupied-in-both-perpetuating-itself-and-in-surpassing-itself/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Fathers never have exactly the daughters they want because they invent a notion a them that the daughters have to conform to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/fathers-never-have-exactly-the-daughters-they-want-because-they/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [However gifted an individual is at the outset, if his or her talents cannot be developed because of his or her social condition, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/however-gifted-an-individual-is-at-the-outset-if-his-or-her-talents/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [In fact, people seem to be tired of fiction now. There are so many other ways of exploring humanity - by ethnology, psychoanalysis, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-fact-people-seem-to-be-tired-of-fiction-now-there-are-so-many/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Feminism is one way of attacking society as it now exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/feminism-is-one-way-of-attacking-society-as-it-now-exists/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Magari mi troverai ridicola, ma mi disprezzerei se non osassi esserlo mai”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/magari-mi-troverai-ridicola-ma-mi-disprezzerei-se-non-osassi-esserlo/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [from one minute to the next the present is merely an honorary past. It must be filled unceasingly anew to dissemble the curse it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/from-one-minute-to-the-next-the-present-is-merely-an-honorary-past-it/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [I am awfully greedy; I want everything from life. I want to be a woman and to be a man, to have many friends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-am-awfully-greedy-i-want-everything-from-life-i-want-to-be-a-woman/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“I enjoyed my exhaustion, though; I liked overdoing things”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-enjoyed-my-exhaustion-though-i-liked-overdoing-things/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“But I miss you to the point of anguish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/but-i-miss-you-to-the-point-of-anguish/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) [Explore all 488 Simone de Beauvoir quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) ## More Bent quotes > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [The longer I live, the more it grieves me to see man, who occupies his supreme place for the very purpose of imposing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-longer-i-live-the-more-it-grieves-me-to-see-man-who-occupies-his/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Old age likes to dwell in the recollections of the past, and, mistaking, the speedy march of years, often is inclined to take the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-kossuth/old-age-likes-to-dwell-in-the-recollections-of-the-past-and-mistaking/) [Lajos Kossuth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-kossuth/) > [The Lord expects us to enjoy our lives. He says there will be some brutal times, but we shouldn't get all bent out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-henderson/the-lord-expects-us-to-enjoy-our-lives-he-says-there-will-be-some/) [Paul Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-henderson/) > [I was married to a law student, and I used to attend classes with him at Georgetown University Law Center. Being of dramatic bent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luanne-rice/i-was-married-to-a-law-student-and-i-used-to-attend-classes-with-him/) [Luanne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luanne-rice/) > [The person who is bent on killing you will follow you wherever you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-koch/the-person-who-is-bent-on-killing-you-will-follow-you-wherever-you-are/) [Ed Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-koch/) > [My heart is like a singing bird Whose nest is in a water'd shoot; My heart is like an apple-tree Whose boughs are bent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-rossetti/my-heart-is-like-a-singing-bird-whose-nest-is-in-a-water-d-shoot-my/) [Christina Rossetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-rossetti/) > [If art is singular expression, then by nature, the best art is controversial. But when art stirs debate for reasons besides its artistic integrity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ridley/if-art-is-singular-expression-then-by-nature-the-best-art-is/) [John Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ridley/) > [I refer to the misunderstanding of Soviet Russia as an aggressive power, militaristically and ideologically bent upon world domination 'seeing', to quote a recent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enoch-powell/i-refer-to-the-misunderstanding-of-soviet-russia-as-an-aggressive/) [Enoch Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enoch-powell/) > [Blessed are the flexible for they will not allow themselves to become bent out of shape!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ludlum/blessed-are-the-flexible-for-they-will-not-allow-themselves-to-become/) [Robert Ludlum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ludlum/) > [But how carve way i' the life that lies before, If bent on groaning ever for the past?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-browning/but-how-carve-way-i-the-life-that-lies-before-if-bent-on-groaning/) [Robert Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-browning/) > [Be Yourself -The man who is neither bent upon pleasing his fellows nor afraid of offending them will enjoy great peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-kempis/be-yourself-the-man-who-is-neither-bent-upon-pleasing-his-fellows-nor/) [Thomas a Kempis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-kempis/) > [When the world grinds you down, bent to tear you apart, cling to what you hold dear, and stay true to your heart. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-fesler/when-the-world-grinds-you-down-bent-to-tear-you-apart-cling-to-what/) [Wes Fesler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-fesler/) > [At the drabber moments of my life (swilling some excrement from the steps, for instance, or rooting with a bent coat-hanger down a blocked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bennett/at-the-drabber-moments-of-my-life-swilling-some-excrement-from-the/) [Alan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bennett/) > [It's very confusing when fame comes early on in your career. You get a little bit bent out of shape in terms of what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-clayton/it-s-very-confusing-when-fame-comes-early-on-in-your-career-you-get-a/) [Adam Clayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-clayton/) [Browse all 641 Bent quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bent/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Simone de Beauvoir" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time-living-because-we-are-so-bent/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bent" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time-living-because-we-are-so-bent/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/simone-de-beauvoir-407_bent_today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time_2451833.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Today, however, we are having a hard time living because we are so bent on outwitting death.” — Simone de Beauvoir", "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": "Simone de Beauvoir", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Today, however, we are having a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time-living-because-we-are-so-bent/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/today-however-we-are-having-a-hard-time-living-because-we-are-so-bent/#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 } } ] } ```