--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He Who Would Live Forever had done an…" description: "\"“He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous back-of-the-envelope calculation and decided that the vicinity of the Chevrolet Suburban was a bet..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg" --- # He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous… ![“He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous back-of-the-envelope calculation and decided that the vicinity of the Chevrolet Suburban was a better strategic alternative than anyplace anywhere near that whitish sandy road above which a gigantic terror-chattering rattlesnake now thrashed in…” quote by Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg) > ““He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous back-of-the-envelope calculation and decided that the vicinity of the Chevrolet Suburban was a better strategic alternative than anyplace anywhere near that whitish sandy road above which a gigantic terror-chattering rattlesnake now thrashed in the grip of his boss gone berserk.”” [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A strategic decision favors a familiar, safe location over an unknown, potentially dangerous one, reflecting risk aversion. **In simple terms:** Choosing a known safe spot over an unknown risky one. Key Takeaway Assess risks before making strategic choices. Themes risk strategy decision‑making Mood analytical cautious pragmatic Type strategic narrative When to use this quote - business planning - military tactics - personal safety - travel decisions Key Concepts behavioral economics situational awareness survival instincts Questions to Reflect On - When have you chosen safety over potential gain? - How do you balance caution with boldness? A Different Perspective Risk aversion can lead to missed opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Live forever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-forever/) ## Related quotes > [“Inside the car Colin was getting thrashed about. Colin was crying out in pain as he could feel his bones breaking deep within his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-eglinger/inside-the-car-colin-was-getting-thrashed-about-colin-was-crying-out/) [Nicole Eglinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-eglinger/) > [When a man makes up his mind to thrash another, he must also make up his mind to be a little thrashed himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/king-james-i/when-a-man-makes-up-his-mind-to-thrash-another-he-must-also-make-up/) [King James I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/king-james-i/) > [“Have you seen a dog lick the hand that thrashed it?!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-mayakovsky/have-you-seen-a-dog-lick-the-hand-that-thrashed-it/) [Vladimir Mayakovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-mayakovsky/) > [A lot of these guys come up and say, 'Man, you were my influence, the way you thrashed the drums.' They don't seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/butch-trucks/a-lot-of-these-guys-come-up-and-say-man-you-were-my-influence-the-way/) [Butch Trucks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/butch-trucks/) > [“The only thing left to her keeping were a bloody old rag and a creased photograph of the ocean which she held pressed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gatewood/the-only-thing-left-to-her-keeping-were-a-bloody-old-rag-and-a/) Robert Gatewood > [“He thrashed like a freshly caught fish as the sucking sounds of draining water gurgled from the pooling blood in his mouth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michiko-katsu/he-thrashed-like-a-freshly-caught-fish-as-the-sucking-sounds-of/) Michiko Katsu > [“He covered her face with a pillow and lay on it. She got half a breath before he crushed her, and she thrashed like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-price/he-covered-her-face-with-a-pillow-and-lay-on-it-she-got-half-a-breath/) Charlie Price > [“Oh my God. For most of eternity, I won't exist. That leaves two options: live forever or destroy the universe. Hm... I may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-weiner/oh-my-god-for-most-of-eternity-i-won-t-exist-that-leaves-two-options/) Zach Weiner > [“People may have to die, but morbidity will live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/people-may-have-to-die-but-morbidity-will-live-forever/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [We exist temporarily through what we take, but we live forever through what we give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-a-lawson/we-exist-temporarily-through-what-we-take-but-we-live-forever-through/) Douglas A. 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It was the same old sod-hut drawl. He sounded like the airline…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/well-things-are-beginning-to-stack-up-a-little-said-gordo-it-was-the/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [“Everything in everybody’s life is … significant. And everybody is alert, watching for the meanings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/everything-in-everybody-s-life-is-significant-and-everybody-is-alert/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > ['Back to Blood' really took it out of me. While I was writing it, I just never went out anywhere, except to the gym.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/back-to-blood-really-took-it-out-of-me-while-i-was-writing-it-i-just/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [In the U.S., the term 'general aviation' means its exact opposite, the way 'public school' does in England. 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They tried to bury the obligatory white sofas under Thai-silk throw pillows of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/they-became-desperate-for-an-antidote-such-as-coziness-color-they/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [A cult is a religion with no political power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/a-cult-is-a-religion-with-no-political-power/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [I don't think journalists should talk about whom they're voting for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/i-don-t-think-journalists-should-talk-about-whom-they-re-voting-for/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [Even hostile parodies admit from the start that the target has a distinct voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/even-hostile-parodies-admit-from-the-start-that-the-target-has-a/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [I had always looked down on sociology as this arriviste discipline. 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Which may be because they think more highly of themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/i-read-somewhere-that-writers-as-they-get-older-become-more-and-more/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) [Explore all 177 Tom Wolfe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) ## More Live forever quotes > [Contradictory precepts that have guided me for as long as I can remember: 1: I will live forever. 2: I will die tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-gardner/contradictory-precepts-that-have-guided-me-for-as-long-as-i-can/) [Howard Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-gardner/) > [“Once Louis Wu had sworn to live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-niven/once-louis-wu-had-sworn-to-live-forever/) [Larry Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-niven/) > [“And in your smile, I will live forever”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/and-in-your-smile-i-will-live-forever/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [Why waste your time being around people who drag you down? You don't live forever, at least in this life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/why-waste-your-time-being-around-people-who-drag-you-down-you-don-t/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“He and Sully dared each other to go on the Wild Mouse and finally went together, howling deliriously as their car plunged into each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/he-and-sully-dared-each-other-to-go-on-the-wild-mouse-and-finally/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [We exist temporarily through what we take, but we live forever through what we give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-a-lawson/we-exist-temporarily-through-what-we-take-but-we-live-forever-through/) Douglas A. Lawson > [“People may have to die, but morbidity will live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/people-may-have-to-die-but-morbidity-will-live-forever/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [“Oh my God. For most of eternity, I won't exist. That leaves two options: live forever or destroy the universe. Hm... I may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-weiner/oh-my-god-for-most-of-eternity-i-won-t-exist-that-leaves-two-options/) Zach Weiner > [“death is predestined for all mortals. Souls live forever, but the body does not. Unless you are immortal, both the soul and body are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yelle-hughes/death-is-predestined-for-all-mortals-souls-live-forever-but-the-body/) [Yelle Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yelle-hughes/) > [“It is a remarkable fact that we must die, and yet we live as if we were to live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guicciardini/it-is-a-remarkable-fact-that-we-must-die-and-yet-we-live-as-if-we/) Guicciardini > [Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgement that something is more important than fear; The brave may not live forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/courage-is-not-the-absence-of-fear-but-rather-the-judgement-that/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [One is given to self-dramatization from time to time. I intend to live forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/one-is-given-to-self-dramatization-from-time-to-time-i-intend-to-live/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“Why live once when you can live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerardo-delgado/why-live-once-when-you-can-live-forever/) Gerardo Delgado > [“― The Viking Prayer “Lo, there do I see my father. Lo, there do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-alexander/the-viking-prayer-lo-there-do-i-see-my-father-lo-there-do-i-see-my/) Michael Alexander > [If what Billy Pilgrim learned from the Tralfamadorians is true, that we will all live forever, no matter how dead we may sometimes seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/if-what-billy-pilgrim-learned-from-the-tralfamadorians-is-true-that/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) [Browse all 850 Live forever quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-forever/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous back-of-the-envelope calculation and decided that the vicinity of the Chevrolet Suburban was a better strategic alternative than anyplace anywhere near that whitish sandy road above which a gigantic terror-chattering rattlesnake now thrashed in the grip of his boss gone berserk.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tom Wolfe" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-instantaneous-back-of-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Live forever" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-instantaneous-back-of-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/73d/tom-wolfe-2191_live-forever_he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-in_2687893.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“He Who Would Live Forever had done an instantaneous back-of-the-envelope calculation and decided that the…” — Tom Wolfe", "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": "Tom Wolfe", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“He Who Would Live Forever had...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-instantaneous-back-of-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/he-who-would-live-forever-had-done-an-instantaneous-back-of-the/#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 } } ] } ```