You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live.
Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117
Il faut avoir voulu mourir, Maximilien, pour savoir combien il est bon de vivre.
You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live.
Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117
What it means
The Count says this to a young man he has just talked out of despair. Coming back from the edge can make life precious. If you are in that dark place, reach out: the other side exists.
The source
"You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live." Alexandre Dumas said it in The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117. Translated from the original French by Spartan Surfers.
"Il faut avoir voulu mourir, Maximilien, pour savoir combien il est bon de vivre."Original French, The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117. Text read at gutenberg.org.
Who said it
Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870). French novelist of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo (1844–46), the story of a sailor wrongly imprisoned who escapes and returns.
Questions
- What does "You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live." mean?
- The Count says this to a young man he has just talked out of despair. Coming back from the edge can make life precious. If you are in that dark place, reach out: the other side exists.
- Who said "You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live."?
- Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870). Source: The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117.
- What is the original French?
- Il faut avoir voulu mourir, Maximilien, pour savoir combien il est bon de vivre. Translated from the original French by Spartan Surfers.
- Is "You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live." on a shirt?
- Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 6 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.
Cite this line
"You must have wanted to die to know how good it is to live." (Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117, translated by Spartan Surfers). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/you-must-have-wanted-to-die-to-know
Filed under Quotes about discipline and grit.
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More from Alexandre Dumas
- All human wisdom is in two words: wait and hope.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117
- Only one who has known the deepest misfortune can feel the highest joy.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117
- Learning is not knowing. Memory makes the one, philosophy the other.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 17
- Wounds of the heart can hide, but they never close.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 86
- Hatred is blind. Whoever pours vengeance may drink a bitter cup.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 35
- There is no happiness or misery, only one state compared with another.The Count of Monte Cristo, ch. 117