--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Either we live by accident and die by…" description: "\"Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan.\" — Thornton Wilder" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg" --- # Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live… ![“Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan.” quote by Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg) > “Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan.” [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life follows either a chaotic or a deliberate pattern; choices shape outcomes. **In simple terms:** Live intentionally or drift aimlessly. Key Takeaway Choose a plan and own its consequences. Themes choice destiny intentionality life Mood thoughtful determined Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career planning - health decisions - financial budgeting Key Concepts free will determinism Questions to Reflect On - What does a “planned life” look like for you? - How do you handle unexpected setbacks? A Different Perspective Plans can fail despite best intentions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident/) [Accidents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accidents/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) ## Related quotes > [What's plan b?' 'We all die now.' 'What's plan c?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/what-s-plan-b-we-all-die-now-what-s-plan-c/) [Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/) > [“If there were any plan in the universe at all, if there were any pattern in human life, surely it could be discovered mysteriously…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/if-there-were-any-plan-in-the-universe-at-all-if-there-were-any/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“You ask me about tragic accidents? If I am on my tractor at my farm and it rolls over on me and kills me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-earnhardt/you-ask-me-about-tragic-accidents-if-i-am-on-my-tractor-at-my-farm/) [Dale Earnhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-earnhardt/) > [I don't want to die in a car accident. When I die it'll be a glorious day. It'll probably be a waterfall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/river-phoenix/i-don-t-want-to-die-in-a-car-accident-when-i-die-it-ll-be-a-glorious/) [River Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/river-phoenix/) > [It's a tragic fact to die in an accident](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/it-s-a-tragic-fact-to-die-in-an-accident/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [“When I die, I plan to be laughing hysterically.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minari-endou/when-i-die-i-plan-to-be-laughing-hysterically/) [Minari Endou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minari-endou/) > [“Only six? Mon Dieu!’ Cleo ceased her pacing and whirled around to face the two Trackers, eyes narrowed, hands on hips. ‘I suppose this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashlee-nicole-bye/only-six-mon-dieu-cleo-ceased-her-pacing-and-whirled-around-to-face/) [Ashlee Nicole Bye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashlee-nicole-bye/) > [There are so many beautiful things to see, but I'll never see them. As I plan to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-so-many-beautiful-things-to-see-but-i-ll-never-see-them-as/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I plan to die at my desk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-hewitt/i-plan-to-die-at-my-desk/) [Don Hewitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-hewitt/) > [“Plan? My plan is to die in a ball of superheated plasma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-s-a-corey/plan-my-plan-is-to-die-in-a-ball-of-superheated-plasma/) [James S.A. Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-s-a-corey/) > [He who has once begun to live by rapine always finds reasons for taking what is not his.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niccolo-machiavelli/he-who-has-once-begun-to-live-by-rapine-always-finds-reasons-for/) [Niccolo Machiavelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niccolo-machiavelli/) > [Don't be afraid of failure, be afraid of not trying in the first place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-forleo/don-t-be-afraid-of-failure-be-afraid-of-not-trying-in-the-first-place/) [Marie Forleo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-forleo/) > [A warrior, or any man for that matter, cannot possibly wish he were somewhere else; a warrior because he lives by challenge, an ordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/a-warrior-or-any-man-for-that-matter-cannot-possibly-wish-he-were/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [We make our fortunes and we call them fate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/we-make-our-fortunes-and-we-call-them-fate/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [One of the noblest words in our language is "grace," defined as "unearned blessing." We live by grace far more than by anything else.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-elton-trueblood/one-of-the-noblest-words-in-our-language-is-grace-defined-as-unearned/) [D. Elton Trueblood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-elton-trueblood/) ## More by Thornton Wilder > [“He respected the slight nervous shadow that crossed her face when he came too near her. But there arose out of this denial itself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/he-respected-the-slight-nervous-shadow-that-crossed-her-face-when-he/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [When you're safe at home you wish you were having an adventure; when you're having an adventure you wish you were safe at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/when-you-re-safe-at-home-you-wish-you-were-having-an-adventure-when/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“Simon Stimson: "...That's what it was to be alive. To move about in a cloud of ignorance; to go up and down trampling on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/simon-stimson-that-s-what-it-was-to-be-alive-to-move-about-in-a-cloud/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“Love as education is one of the great powers of the world, but it hangs in a delicate suspension; it achieves its harmony as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/love-as-education-is-one-of-the-great-powers-of-the-world-but-it/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [Many great writers have been extraordinarily awkward in daily exchange, but the greatest give the impression that their style was nursed by the closest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/many-great-writers-have-been-extraordinarily-awkward-in-daily/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [A man looks pretty small at a wedding, George. All those good women standing shoulder to shoulder, making sure that the knot's tied in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/a-man-looks-pretty-small-at-a-wedding-george-all-those-good-women/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [The knowledge that she would never be loved in return acted upon her ideas as a tide acts upon cliffs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/the-knowledge-that-she-would-never-be-loved-in-return-acted-upon-her/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“But while they continued staring into one another’s face waiting for the miracle of science the pain grew worse.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/but-while-they-continued-staring-into-one-another-s-face-waiting-for/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [I am convinced that, except in a few extraordinary cases, one form or another of an unhappy childhood is essential to the formation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/i-am-convinced-that-except-in-a-few-extraordinary-cases-one-form-or/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [Many who have spent a lifetime in it can tell us less of love than the child that lost a dog yesterday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/many-who-have-spent-a-lifetime-in-it-can-tell-us-less-of-love-than/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“Cesar is not a philosophical man. His life has been one long flight from reflection. At least he is clever enough not to expose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/cesar-is-not-a-philosophical-man-his-life-has-been-one-long-flight/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [Every person who has ever lived has lived an unbroken succession of unique occasions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/every-person-who-has-ever-lived-has-lived-an-unbroken-succession-of/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [“Without your wounds where would your power be? It is your melancholy that makes your low voice tremble into the hearts of men and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/without-your-wounds-where-would-your-power-be-it-is-your-melancholy/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [Ninety-nine per cent of the people in the world are fools and the rest of us are in great danger of contagion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/ninety-nine-per-cent-of-the-people-in-the-world-are-fools-and-the/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [There's nothing like mixing with woman to bring out all the foolishness in a man of sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/there-s-nothing-like-mixing-with-woman-to-bring-out-all-the/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) [Explore all 232 Thornton Wilder quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) ## More Accident quotes > [Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such: it is an accident, not a property, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/fame-we-may-understand-is-no-sure-test-of-merit-but-only-a/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [I went to school at night in L.A. to brush up on my engineering while I applied to the astronaut program. I really did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/i-went-to-school-at-night-in-l-a-to-brush-up-on-my-engineering-while/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [“The accident in your rearview mirror already happened. The one in front of you is still preventable. Pay attention.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nakia-r-laushaul/the-accident-in-your-rearview-mirror-already-happened-the-one-in/) [Nakia R. Laushaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nakia-r-laushaul/) > [People dont get married by accident and they dont get divorced by accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-hayes/people-dont-get-married-by-accident-and-they-dont-get-divorced-by/) [Darren Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-hayes/) > [My father had Parkinson's, though he actually died following a bicycle accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/my-father-had-parkinson-s-though-he-actually-died-following-a-bicycle/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [A tragic car accident put me in a wheelchair and dashed my hopes and dreams for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-cawthorn/a-tragic-car-accident-put-me-in-a-wheelchair-and-dashed-my-hopes-and/) [Madison Cawthorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-cawthorn/) > [My musical career was an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sade-adu/my-musical-career-was-an-accident/) [Sade Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sade-adu/) > [The spirit in the body is like wine in a glass; when it spills, it seeps into air and earth and light….It’s a mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-michaels/the-spirit-in-the-body-is-like-wine-in-a-glass-when-it-spills-it/) [Anne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-michaels/) > [accident ruled every corner of the universe except the chambers of the human heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guterson/accident-ruled-every-corner-of-the-universe-except-the-chambers-of/) [David Guterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guterson/) > [There is a French expression that says: to be exposed to an accident, to cross a street without looking at the cars means exposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-virilio/there-is-a-french-expression-that-says-to-be-exposed-to-an-accident/) [Paul Virilio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-virilio/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [High birth is an accident, not a virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/high-birth-is-an-accident-not-a-virtue/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [“I just got out of the hospital. I was in a speed reading accident. I hit a book mark and flew across the room.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/i-just-got-out-of-the-hospital-i-was-in-a-speed-reading-accident-i/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [However, I met with a horrible accident while riding my bike in Sangla Valley. The accident was a wakeup call for me stop getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhinav-shukla/however-i-met-with-a-horrible-accident-while-riding-my-bike-in-sangla/) [Abhinav Shukla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhinav-shukla/) > [“Because the core of my personal philosophy is that everything that happens to us benefits us, I was also spared the futility of cursing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-the-core-of-my-personal-philosophy-is-that-everything-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 922 Accident quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accident/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thornton Wilder" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-accident-or-we-live-by-plan-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accident" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-accident-or-we-live-by-plan-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af5/thornton-wilder-1495_accident_either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-ac_2572456.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Either we live by accident and die by accident, or we live by plan and die by plan.” — Thornton Wilder", "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": "Thornton Wilder", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Either we live by accident and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-accident-or-we-live-by-plan-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/either-we-live-by-accident-and-die-by-accident-or-we-live-by-plan-and/#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 } } ] } ```