Would that death were like this. Would that one would sleep and sleep and sleep forever.
Interpretation
The quote reflects a longing for eternal rest, likening death to a peaceful sleep.
Anne Rice's quote expresses a deep yearning for the tranquil relief that death might bring, suggesting a desire for an end to suffering and an escape into eternal rest. It captures a contemplative perspective on the nature of mortality, conveying both a wistful acceptance and a profound longing for peace in the face of lifeβs struggles.
In practice
In a reflective eulogy, one might say, 'As Anne Rice put it, would that death were like this, a peaceful sleep.'
From my stone pillow I have dreamed dreams of the mortal world above. I have heard its voices, its new music, as lullabies as I lie in my grave. I have envisioned its fantastical discoveries. I have known its courage in the timeless sanctum of my thoughts. And though it shuts me out with its dazzling forms, I long for one with the strength to roam it fearlessly, to ride the Devil's Road through its heart.
We all suffer under a curse, the curse that we know more than we can endure, and there is nothing, absolutely nothing we can do about the force and the lure of this knowledge.
And so this young one, this young one whom I had so loved, I had to forsake, no matter how broken my heart, no matter how lonely my soul, no matter how bruised my intellect and spirit.
Dear God, help me. Do not forget me on this tiny cinder lost in a galaxy that is lostβa heart no bigger than a speck of dust beating, beating against death, against meaninglessness, against guilt, against sorrow.
The vampires have always been metaphors for me. They've always been vehicles through which I can express things I have felt very, very deeply.
In the very depths of Hell, do not demons love one another?
They [intellectuals] coined most of the slogans that guided the butcheries of Bolshevism, Fascism, and Nazism. Intellectuals extolling the delights of murder, writers advocating censorship, philosophers judging the merits of thinkers and authors, not according to the value of their contributions but according to their achievements on battlefields, are the spiritual leaders of our age of perpetual strife.
Criminals, people who commit crimes, usually society rejects these people. They are also part of our society. Give them some form of punishment to say they were wrong, but show them they are part of society and can change. Show them compassion.
American individualism, much celebrated and cherished, has developed without its essential corrective, which is belonging.
Nothing incites to money-crimes like great poverty or great wealth.
In the very early days of Wham! the attention felt great, but I do wonder how much freedom I gave away by trying to become something I wasn't.
People who think you could wave a magic wand and the legacy of the past will be over are blind.
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