[ColanR]

I think that's why sleep has been called the 'little death' since ancient times. In a sense, you die every time you sleep, and wake up a slightly different person.

Edit: ya'll have dirty minds. Homer refers to 'sleep as the brother of death' in the Illiad. Apparently Buddha said something similar too, though I can't find a source.

Edit2: just going to leave you with this: "each day is a little life: every waking and rising a little birth, every fresh morning a little youth, every going to rest and sleep a little death." – Arthur Schopenhauer

[sandworm101]

Of you see a french character speak of having a little death, it isn't about sleep.

To quote the recent BBC series Versailles: "A little death is good for everyone." Louise XIV isn't talking about getting his eight hours.

[pnut]

I understand that expression to have a slightly different meaning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_petite_mort

[wing-_-nuts]

Ehem, it's not sleep that's called 'the little death', although it tends to happen in the same place :^)

[fipar]

The Schopenhauer quote reminded me of Saucer-like by Sonic Youth. I always found this line beautiful and now wonder if Lee borrowed the idea from Schopenhauer or if it's just a coincidence:

"Every day is just another breath, every night another little death"

[CSMastermind]

I wonder if there was some evolutionary advantage to sleep in making death less scary. If you didn't go to sleep every night, then the idea of suddenly becoming unconscious would be absolutely terrifying.