“ I never have held death in contempt, though in the course of my explorations I have oftentimes felt that to meet one's fate on a noble mountain, or in the heart of a glacier, would be blessed as compared with death from disease, or from some shabby lowland accident. ”
John Muir, Stickeen (1897). copy citation
| Author | John Muir |
|---|---|
| Source | Stickeen |
| Topic | death accident disease |
| Date | 1897 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/11673/11673-h/11673-h.htm |
Context
“At such times one's whole body is eye, and common skill and fortitude are replaced by power beyond our call or knowledge. Never before had I been so long under deadly strain. How I got up that cliff I never could tell. The thing seemed to have been done by somebody else. I never have held death in contempt, though in the course of my explorations I have oftentimes felt that to meet one's fate on a noble mountain, or in the heart of a glacier, would be blessed as compared with death from disease, or from some shabby lowland accident. But the best death, quick and crystal-pure, set so glaringly open before us, is hard enough to face, even though we feel gratefully sure that we have already had happiness enough for a dozen lives.
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Meaning and analysis
