
E-text prepared by D Alexander, Juliet Sutherland,
DEATH - BY - MAURICE MAETERLINCK - TRANSLATED BY - ALEXANDER TEIXEIRA DE MATTOS
NEW YORK - DODD, MEAD & COMPANY - 1912
DEATH - I - OUR IDEA OF DEATH
II. A PRIMITIVE IDEA
III. WE MUST ENLIGHTEN AND ESTABLISH OUR IDEA OF DEATH
IV. WE MUST RID DEATH OF THAT WHICH GOES BEFORE
V. THE PANGS OF DEATH MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO MAN ALONE
VI. THE MISTAKE OF THE DOCTORS IN PROLONGING THE PANGS OF DEATH
VII. THEIR ARGUMENTS
In this contemplative essay, the author turns a quiet, probing eye toward the one certainty that frames every human life: death. He argues that we spend our days distracted, pushing the inevitable to the margins of thought, while it silently gathers its weight around us. The prose moves from the ancient images of Sheol and Hades to modern anxieties, showing how the mystery of the final moment remains both familiar and unsettling.
The piece urges readers to confront the unknown directly, to craft a personal understanding of mortality rather than surrender to vague, comforting myths. By examining how fear both magnifies and obscures death, the essay invites a calm, thoughtful stance—one that acknowledges the darkness without letting it dominate our lives. It offers a gentle challenge: to meet the end with a clear, examined mind, turning dread into a quiet, purposeful awareness.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (58K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
2010-02-22
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1862–1949
A master of Symbolist drama, this Nobel Prize-winning Belgian writer filled his plays and essays with mystery, dreamlike beauty, and big questions about life and fate. His work moves from shadowy, haunting theatre to the brighter wonder of The Blue Bird.
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