So I considered those who are dead and gone more fortunate than those who are still alive.

So what advantage does a wise man have over a fool? And what advantage does a pauper gain by knowing how to survive?

So I loathed life because what happens on earth seems awful to me; for all the benefits of wisdom are futile – like chasing the wind.

I considered all the living who walk on earth, as well as the successor who would arise in his place.

But whoever is among the living has hope; a live dog is better than a dead lion.

For the living know that they will die, but the dead do not know anything; they have no further reward – and even the memory of them disappears.