--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wondered vaguely if this was when it…" description: "\"I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether I would pull up tonight's darkness like a quilt and be dead and at peace evermore.\" — William..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg" --- # I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether… ![“I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether I would pull up tonight's darkness like a quilt and be dead and at peace evermore.” quote by William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg) > “I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether I would pull up tonight's darkness like a quilt and be dead and at peace evermore.” [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator contemplates death as a release, likening darkness to a comforting quilt, seeking peace beyond life. **In simple terms:** Death is imagined as a peaceful, comforting end. Key Takeaway Consider how you view mortality and peace. Themes mortality peace acceptance Mood somber reflective Type existential philosophical When to use this quote - end‑of‑life thoughts - grief processing - spiritual contemplation Key Concepts philosophy existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What would bring you peace in life? - How do you confront the idea of death? A Different Perspective Fear of the unknown can dominate such visions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Quilt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quilt/) ## Related quotes > [He wondered vaguely whether in the abolished past it had been a normal experience to lie in bed like this, in the cool of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/he-wondered-vaguely-whether-in-the-abolished-past-it-had-been-a/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“I know that your soul is on life support and that you feel lost and like you’re completely spinning out of control, but you’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-know-that-your-soul-is-on-life-support-and-that-you-feel-lost-and/) [Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/) > [I don't like darkness in everything. I like my superheroes in primary colors, and fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genndy-tartakovsky/i-don-t-like-darkness-in-everything-i-like-my-superheroes-in-primary/) [Genndy Tartakovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genndy-tartakovsky/) > [“All the metaphors in this world wouldn’t scratch the surface of what stepping into darkness is like for me. And that’s just darkness. Don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-duncan/all-the-metaphors-in-this-world-wouldn-t-scratch-the-surface-of-what/) [Glen Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-duncan/) > [Dark, dark! The horror of darkness, like a shroud, wraps me and bears me on through mist and cloud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/dark-dark-the-horror-of-darkness-like-a-shroud-wraps-me-and-bears-me/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [I like their darkness but I also like the pop-side of the Velvet Underground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-gore/i-like-their-darkness-but-i-also-like-the-pop-side-of-the-velvet/) [Martin Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-gore/) > [“The main thing I sense is...darkness." As soon as the words were out I realized how awful they sounded, so I rushed to clarify,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-day/the-main-thing-i-sense-is-darkness-as-soon-as-the-words-were-out-i/) [Kristen Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-day/) > [Most of us, myself included, have forgotten what real darkness is like. We live in a world where light is inescapable. It comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-halpern/most-of-us-myself-included-have-forgotten-what-real-darkness-is-like/) [Jake Halpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-halpern/) > [“Remember what I said when I led to Omar and the queen?" I bobbed my head, unable to look away from his jewel-like eyed,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kat-falls/remember-what-i-said-when-i-led-to-omar-and-the-queen-i-bobbed-my/) [Kat Falls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kat-falls/) > [Dramatically, I like darkness, I like conflict - but I don't see the world as defined by them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-arnold/dramatically-i-like-darkness-i-like-conflict-but-i-don-t-see-the/) [Andrea Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-arnold/) > [“The darkness like a demon or a dark elf chooses self-confident, creative and just snappy people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-johannisson/the-darkness-like-a-demon-or-a-dark-elf-chooses-self-confident/) [Karin Johannisson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-johannisson/) > [“But this time of the year she was in her vaults, underground, and here she resided alone, spending most of her life in darkness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-robinson/but-this-time-of-the-year-she-was-in-her-vaults-underground-and-here/) [Bruce Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-robinson/) > [“All night, far above him the light stood guard, slicing the darkness like a sword.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-l-stedman/all-night-far-above-him-the-light-stood-guard-slicing-the-darkness/) [M.L. Stedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-l-stedman/) > [“There is no darkness like that of a confined space. It's darker than the inside of eyelids, and darker than the night.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-destefano/there-is-no-darkness-like-that-of-a-confined-space-it-s-darker-than/) [Lauren DeStefano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-destefano/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) ## More by William Manchester > [ It is true that despite occasional gleams of Churchillian eloquence he \[Gen. Douglas MacArthur\] usually spoke poorly. He was far more effective in conversations… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/it-is-true-that-despite-occasional-gleams-of-churchillian-eloquence/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [Men do not fight for flag or country, for the Marine Corps or glory or any other abstraction. They fight for one another. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/men-do-not-fight-for-flag-or-country-for-the-marine-corps-or-glory-or/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [Actors who have tried to play Churchill and MacArthur have failed abysmally because each of those men was a great actor playing himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/actors-who-have-tried-to-play-churchill-and-macarthur-have-failed/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [I realized that the worst thing that could happen to me was about to happen to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-realized-that-the-worst-thing-that-could-happen-to-me-was-about-to/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [“The key to successful extramarital sex, therefore, was discretion. Mrs. Patrick Campbell, perhaps the most outspoken woman in polite society, said dryly: “It doesn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/the-key-to-successful-extramarital-sex-therefore-was-discretion-mrs/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [“It was Churchill who called John Foster Dulles “the only bull who brings his own china shop with him,” and who coined the progression,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/it-was-churchill-who-called-john-foster-dulles-the-only-bull-who/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [I came to a dead stop and began major revisions. Sometimes these entailed the shredding of all existing manuscript for a fresh start -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-came-to-a-dead-stop-and-began-major-revisions-sometimes-these/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [A man's task is to find himself, and if he fails in this, it doesn't much matter what else he finds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/a-man-s-task-is-to-find-himself-and-if-he-fails-in-this-it-doesn-t/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [He was a great thundering paradox of a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/he-was-a-great-thundering-paradox-of-a-man/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [“Byron wrote his shortest and most eloquent poem as a testament to a titled woman who had taken leave of her husband for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/byron-wrote-his-shortest-and-most-eloquent-poem-as-a-testament-to-a/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [ His \[Gen. Douglas MacArthur's\] own heroes were Lincoln and Washington, and in some ways he resembled them. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/his-gen-douglas-macarthur-s-own-heroes-were-lincoln-and-washington/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [But there are no loners. No man lives in a void. His every act is conditioned by his time and his society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/but-there-are-no-loners-no-man-lives-in-a-void-his-every-act-is/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [As she sallied forth from her boudoir, you would never have guessed how quickly she could strip for action.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/as-she-sallied-forth-from-her-boudoir-you-would-never-have-guessed/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [“In 1988, William Manchester began writing The Last Lion: Defender of the Realm, the third and final volume of his biography of Winston Churchill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/in-1988-william-manchester-began-writing-the-last-lion-defender-of/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) > [ His \[Gen. Douglas MacArthur's\] own heroes were Lincoln and Washington, and in some ways he resembled them. Like them, he was slandered and misunderstood. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/his-gen-douglas-macarthur-s-own-heroes-were-lincoln-and-washington-2/) [William Manchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) [Explore all 35 William Manchester quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/) ## More Darkness quotes > [“Narrative cannot sustain formlessness any more than light can sustain darkness - it is the antithesis of formlessness, and so it can never truly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/narrative-cannot-sustain-formlessness-any-more-than-light-can-sustain/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [“Wait here, wait here!" he cried and jumped up and began to run for help toward a cluster of lights he saw in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/wait-here-wait-here-he-cried-and-jumped-up-and-began-to-run-for-help/) [Flannery O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flannery-o-connor/) > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Clear moments are so short. There is much more darkness. More ocean than terra firma. More shadow than form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-zagajewski/clear-moments-are-so-short-there-is-much-more-darkness-more-ocean/) [Adam Zagajewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-zagajewski/) > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“I promise to respect and protect your aloneness, knowing that everything created must have its period of darkness: child and bulb, poem and personality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/i-promise-to-respect-and-protect-your-aloneness-knowing-that/) [anne morrow lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [The beauty of darkness is how it lets you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-beauty-of-darkness-is-how-it-lets-you-see/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [“Even in darkness your lips taste of sunshine”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/even-in-darkness-your-lips-taste-of-sunshine/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [“Defy me not for gleam can only shine in my existence" said Darkness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/defy-me-not-for-gleam-can-only-shine-in-my-existence-said-darkness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What does he look like? The question was soft- tentative. I knew who he meant. I interlaced my fingers through Rhysand's and squeezed tightly.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/what-does-he-look-like-the-question-was-soft-tentative-i-knew-who-he/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [“Life is like coffee, the darker it gets, the more it energizes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankita-singhal/life-is-like-coffee-the-darker-it-gets-the-more-it-energizes/) [Ankita Singhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankita-singhal/) > [Twinking tears in a sea of black. Soft light in a world of darkness. Tiny wishes in a place of dreams. Do you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-gentile/twinking-tears-in-a-sea-of-black-soft-light-in-a-world-of-darkness/) Nicole Gentile [Browse all 8,219 Darkness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether I would pull up tonight's darkness like a quilt and be dead and at peace evermore.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Manchester" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-would-end-whether-i-would-pull/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Darkness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-would-end-whether-i-would-pull/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/486/william-manchester-18393_darkness_i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-w_2533911.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I wondered vaguely if this was when it would end, whether I would pull up tonight's darkness like a quilt…” — William Manchester", "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": "William Manchester", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-manchester/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I wondered vaguely if this was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-would-end-whether-i-would-pull/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-manchester/i-wondered-vaguely-if-this-was-when-it-would-end-whether-i-would-pull/#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 } } ] } ```