Quote Originally Posted by Burney View Post
WB Yeats has it right, m.

‘Not dread, nor hope attends a dying animal.
Man awaits his end, dreading and hoping all’

It’s a distinction that lies at the heart both of human misery and our absurd attitudes to animals.
In fairness, he pinched that from Burns:

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane,
In proving foresight may be vain;
The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men
Gang aft agley,
An'lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promis'd joy!

Still thou art blest, compar'd wi' me
The present only toucheth thee:
But, Och! I backward cast my e'e.
On prospects drear!
An' forward, tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!