<< It seemed to him that it was only by an effort of will that he did not curl up in a corner and whimper. He had an instinct to appeal for succour to a God he did not believe in, and he had to clench his teeth to prevent his trembling lips from uttering a prayer. He had faced death before. He knew that he had no great attachment to life. . . . No, it was not that, it was just some instinct over which he had no control; and he looked curiously, as though it were something outside himself, at the terror that made his throat dry and his knees shake.
— Somerset Maugham, The Narrow Corner >>
And no less important: "If you want to eat well in England, eat three breakfasts."