"Disease makes men more physical, it leaves them nothing but body"

This quote by Thomas Mann speaks to the power of illness to remove away the intricacies of life and leave us with absolutely nothing however our physical bodies. It suggests that when we are faced with a major health problem, our focus shifts from the psychological and psychological elements of life to the physical. We become more familiar with our bodies and the constraints they trouble us. We end up being more conscious of our mortality and the fragility of life. The quote also implies that illness can be a humbling experience, as it requires us to face our own death and the powerlessness of our physiques. It can be a tip of our mortality and the value of valuing the time we have. Eventually, this quote acts as a pointer that our physical bodies are all we have in completion, and that we need to look after them while we can.