Who really said it
Richard Dawkins opens chapter 1, “The Anaesthetic of Familiarity,” of Unweaving the Rainbow (1998) with this sentence.
Last verified 9 Nov 2026 · how we verify · spot an error?
For presentations
Verified quote & credit
“We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones” Richard Dawkins, Unweaving the Rainbow (1998), chapter 1; exact published opening sentence.
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In context
Evoking the world of Richard Dawkins — Evolutionary biologist and author. Theme: "We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones". Atmospheric and restrained, cinematic directional light, a muted period-appropriate palette, fine grain and texture. Compose with generous empty space for the quote and a small credit line. No lettering in the image itself.
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Provenance
We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones.
Publisher-supplied chapter excerptHow we verified this
The excerpt carries a 1998 Richard Dawkins copyright notice. Only the identifying sentence is reproduced here.
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Context
Dawkins sets the certainty of death beside the much greater number of possible people who will never exist. That reversal introduces a chapter about how familiarity can dull a person’s appreciation of being alive, within a book defending science as a source of wonder.
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Exact opening sentence, chapter heading, 1998 copyright, and publisher attribution are visible in the reproduced excerpt.
Teaching handout reproduces the opening paragraph and identifies Unweaving the Rainbow.
Sourced quotation entry locates the passage in chapter 1 and warns against an unsupported extended quotation.
Biographical reference identifies Dawkins as an evolutionary biologist born in 1941 and records his Oxford career.
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The author
For writers & researchers
Dawkins, Richard. Unweaving the Rainbow: Science, Delusion and the Appetite for Wonder. 1998, chapter 1. Publisher-supplied excerpt reproduced by AbeBooks.
Quotle.info. “Who really said ‘We are going to die, and that makes us the lucky ones’?” Last verified 9 Nov 2026. https://quotle.info/who-said/we-are-going-to-die-and-that-makes-us-the-lucky-ones/