Alarms Quote by Walt Whitman
“And as to you Death, and you bitter hug of mortality, it is idle to try to alarm me… And as to you corpse, I think you are good manure, but that does not offend me, I smell the white roses sweet-scented and growing, I reach to the leafy lips — I reach to the polished breasts of melons. And as to you life, I reckon you are the leavings of many deaths, No doubt I have died myself ten thousand times before.”
About This Quote
Source Poem: Song of Himself, Leaves of Grass, 1855
The speaker confronts death and mortality with indifference, seeing them as natural cycles that do not disturb his inner peace.
In simple terms: Death is just another part of life, not something to fear.
Key Takeaway
Embrace life's cycles without fear.
Themes
mortality
indifference
nature
transcendence
Mood
contemplative
detached
poetic
Type
philosophical
literary
When to use this quote
- grief
- personal reflection
- creative writing
- philosophical contemplation
Key Concepts
existentialism
stoicism
nihilism
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you find peace when faced with loss?
- What does it mean to be indifferent to death?
A Different Perspective
This view may ignore the emotional pain that loss can cause.
