--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have a limit, a very discouraging…" description: "\"We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death. That's why we like all the things that we assume have no limits and, therefore, no end...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg" --- # We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit… ![“We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death. That's why we like all the things that we assume have no limits and, therefore, no end. It's a way of escaping thoughts about death. We like lists because we don't want to die.” quote by Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg) > “We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death. That's why we like all the things that we assume have no limits and, therefore, no end. It's a way of escaping thoughts about death. We like lists because we don't want to die.” [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People create endless lists to avoid confronting mortality, seeking illusionary permanence. **In simple terms:** Lists distract us from death, giving false sense of endlessness. Key Takeaway Use lists mindfully, not as denial. Themes mortality distraction lists psychology Mood thoughtful philosophical Type existential psychological When to use this quote - project planning - to‑do lists - goal setting - habit tracking Key Concepts existentialism coping mechanisms human denial Questions to Reflect On - Why do you avoid thinking about death? - How can you accept limits while staying productive? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on lists can cause anxiety and avoidance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Assuming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assuming/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Discouraging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discouraging/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [Escaping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/escaping/) [Humiliating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humiliating/) [Limit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limit/) [Limit Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limit-death-240234/) [Limits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) [Limits End](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits-end-3521352/) [Lists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lists/) [Thoughts Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughts-death-629603/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Wanting to die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanting-to-die/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humiliating-limit-death/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Rich man and poor move side by side toward the limit of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pindar/rich-man-and-poor-move-side-by-side-toward-the-limit-of-death/) [Pindar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pindar/) > [“I'm like a machine being run over its RPM limit: The bearings are overheating - a minute longer, and the metal is going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yevgeny-zamyatin/i-m-like-a-machine-being-run-over-its-rpm-limit-the-bearings-are-2/) [Yevgeny Zamyatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yevgeny-zamyatin/) > [Love has no age, no limit; and no death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-galsworthy/love-has-no-age-no-limit-and-no-death/) [John Galsworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-galsworthy/) > [I thought, “I want to die. I want to die more than ever before. There’s no chance now of a recovery. No matter what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osamu-dazai/i-thought-i-want-to-die-i-want-to-die-more-than-ever-before-there-s/) [Osamu Dazai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osamu-dazai/) > [“I believe all sin, love, glory are this: when you slide down the knotted sheets, escaping from Gestapo headquarters, and she hugs you, there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-believe-all-sin-love-glory-are-this-when-you-slide-down-the-knotted/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If I had my life over again I should form the habit of nightly composing myself to thoughts of death. I would practice, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-spark/if-i-had-my-life-over-again-i-should-form-the-habit-of-nightly/) [Muriel Spark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-spark/) > [“Old age is not meant to be survived alone," Man Rapadou said, her voice trailing with her own hidden thoughts. "Death should come gently,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/old-age-is-not-meant-to-be-survived-alone-man-rapadou-said-her-voice/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“If I had my life over I should form the habit of nightly composing myself to thoughts of death. I would practice, as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-burkeman/if-i-had-my-life-over-i-should-form-the-habit-of-nightly-composing/) [Oliver Burkeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-burkeman/) > [I think I write mostly about death and so it is interesting to hear how often people think I'm writing about pregnancy and birth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-think-i-write-mostly-about-death-and-so-it-is-interesting-to-hear/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [Fatigue dulls the pain, but awakes enticing thoughts of death. So! that is the way in which you are tempted to overcome your loneliness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dag-hammarskj-ld/fatigue-dulls-the-pain-but-awakes-enticing-thoughts-of-death-so-that/) [Dag Hammarskjold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dag-hammarskj-ld/) > [“If I had my life to live over again, I would form the habit of nightly composing myself to thoughts of death. I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-spark/if-i-had-my-life-to-live-over-again-i-would-form-the-habit-of-nightly/) [Muriel Spark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-spark/) > [“No worries about money, success, fear, joy, pain, sorrow, sex, or love. Absolute zero. No father, mother, girlfriend, lover. The dead are orphans. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bachman/no-worries-about-money-success-fear-joy-pain-sorrow-sex-or-love/) [Richard Bachman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bachman/) > [“In my late thirties the dream of disappointment and exhaustion had been the dream of the exploding head: the dream of a noise in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-s-naipaul-2/in-my-late-thirties-the-dream-of-disappointment-and-exhaustion-had/) [V.S. Naipaul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/v-s-naipaul-2/) > [There are moments of despair that come sometimes, when night sets in and a white fog presses against the windows. Then our house changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-smith/there-are-moments-of-despair-that-come-sometimes-when-night-sets-in/) [Stevie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-smith/) ## More by Umberto Eco > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Followers of the occult believe in only what they already know, and in those things that confirm what they have already learned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/followers-of-the-occult-believe-in-only-what-they-already-know-and-in/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“This has nothing to do with realism (even if it explains also realism). A completely real world can be constructed, in which asses fly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/this-has-nothing-to-do-with-realism-even-if-it-explains-also-realism/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“…there’s nothing in this world that demands more caution than the truth. To tell the truth is like leeching one’s own heart...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-s-nothing-in-this-world-that-demands-more-caution-than-the/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [The book is like the spoon, scissors, the hammer, the wheel. Once invented, it cannot be improved. You cannot make a spoon that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-book-is-like-the-spoon-scissors-the-hammer-the-wheel-once/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“No algorithm exists for the metaphor, nor can a metaphor be produced by means of a computer’s precise instructions, no matter what the volume…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/no-algorithm-exists-for-the-metaphor-nor-can-a-metaphor-be-produced/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [With all of its defects, the global market makes war less likely, even between the USA and China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/with-all-of-its-defects-the-global-market-makes-war-less-likely-even/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [The Fundamental Principle that governs - or ought to govern -human affairs if we wish to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, or pointless utopias, is negotiation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-fundamental-principle-that-governs-or-ought-to-govern-human/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Any fact becomes important when it's connected to another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/any-fact-becomes-important-when-it-s-connected-to-another/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [American coffee can be a pale solution served at a temperature of 100 degrees centigrade in plastic thermos cups, usually obligatory in railroad stations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/american-coffee-can-be-a-pale-solution-served-at-a-temperature-of-100/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [Listening doesn't mean trying to understand. Anything, however trifling, may be of use one day. What matters is to know something that others don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/listening-doesn-t-mean-trying-to-understand-anything-however-trifling/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [They say that a cat, if it falls from a window and hits its nose, can lose its sense of smell and then, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/they-say-that-a-cat-if-it-falls-from-a-window-and-hits-its-nose-can/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [There are magic moments, involving great physical fatigue and intense motor excitement, that produce visions of people known in the past. As I learned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-are-magic-moments-involving-great-physical-fatigue-and-intense/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [All poets write bad poetry. Bad poets publish them, good poets burn them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/all-poets-write-bad-poetry-bad-poets-publish-them-good-poets-burn-them/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [There are four kinds of people in this world: cretins, fools, morons, and lunatics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/there-are-four-kinds-of-people-in-this-world-cretins-fools-morons-and/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) [Explore all 600 Umberto Eco quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) ## More Assuming quotes > [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/) > [Our young Marines of today are courageous, willing to make sacrifices, and are marvelous team players. I am confident our Corps, and indeed our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-conway/our-young-marines-of-today-are-courageous-willing-to-make-sacrifices/) [James T. Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-conway/) > [Everyone assumes writers spend their time lounging around, writing and occasionally striking a pose whilst having a think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-sheridan/everyone-assumes-writers-spend-their-time-lounging-around-writing-and/) [Sara Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-sheridan/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/) [Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/) > [Whatever your conscious mind assumes and believes to be true, your subconscious mind will accept and bring to pass. Believe in good fortune, divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-murphy/whatever-your-conscious-mind-assumes-and-believes-to-be-true-your/) [Joseph Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-murphy/) > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [A state of mind is something that one assumes. It cannot be purchased, it must be created.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/a-state-of-mind-is-something-that-one-assumes-it-cannot-be-purchased/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [One must believe that every living thing whatsoever must change insensibly in its organization and in its form... One must therefore never expect to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baptiste-lamarck/one-must-believe-that-every-living-thing-whatsoever-must-change/) [Jean-Baptiste Lamarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baptiste-lamarck/) > [I think the biggest problem working with me would be that I'm an only child, and so I have an internal dialogue that goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-think-the-biggest-problem-working-with-me-would-be-that-i-m-an-only/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [It is worth noticing that those who assume an imposing demeanor and seek to pass themselves off for something beyond what they are, are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whately/it-is-worth-noticing-that-those-who-assume-an-imposing-demeanor-and/) [Richard Whately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whately/) > [People just assume that if you're famous, you're in Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-fox/people-just-assume-that-if-you-re-famous-you-re-in-hollywood/) [Megan Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-fox/) > [The behavior of any bureaucratic organization can best be understood by assuming that it is controlled by a secret cabal of its enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-conquest/the-behavior-of-any-bureaucratic-organization-can-best-be-understood/) [Robert Conquest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-conquest/) > [Humans suffer from self-centred notions as to the nature of life. Humans assume that alien life forms should conform to standards that match our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-perry/humans-suffer-from-self-centred-notions-as-to-the-nature-of-life/) [Steve Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-perry/) > [We can use our art to become political, to become something you want to talk about. We make clothes, but we have the chance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-rousteing/we-can-use-our-art-to-become-political-to-become-something-you-want/) [Olivier Rousteing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-rousteing/) > [Everyone seems to assume that the unscrupulous parts of journalism will be the frivolous or jocular parts. This is against all ethical experience. Jokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/everyone-seems-to-assume-that-the-unscrupulous-parts-of-journalism/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) [Browse all 2,452 Assuming quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/assuming/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death. That's why we like all the things that we assume have no limits and, therefore, no end. It's a way of escaping thoughts about death. We like lists because we don't want to die.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Umberto Eco" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humiliating-limit-death-that-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Assuming" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humiliating-limit-death-that-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/049/umberto-eco-313_assuming_we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humi_1189114.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We have a limit, a very discouraging, humiliating limit: death. That's why we like all the things that we…” — Umberto Eco", "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": "Umberto Eco", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We have a limit, a very...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humiliating-limit-death-that-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/we-have-a-limit-a-very-discouraging-humiliating-limit-death-that-s/#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 } } ] } ```