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Accidents, try to change them - it's impossible. The accidental reveals man.
J. B. Priestley
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Accidents reveal our true nature, and attempting to change them is futile.

This quote suggests that the unexpected events in life, or 'accidents,' are not just random occurrences but rather reflections of our true selves. Attempting to alter these accidents is an exercise in futility, as they often reveal our character and shape our identity, underscoring that who we are is revealed through our reactions to unforeseen circumstances.

Themes

AccidentsSelfCharacterFutilityReveal

In practice

Example use cases

A motivational speaker might use this quote to emphasize resilience in the face of unexpected challenges during their presentation.

More from J. B. Priestley

We must beware the revenge of the starved senses, the embittered animal in its prison.
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But some of us are beginning to pull well away, in our irritation, from...the exquisite tasters, the vintage snobs, the three-star Michelin gourmets. There is, we feel, a decent area somewhere between boiled carrots and Beluga caviare, sour plonk and Chateau Lafitte, where we can take care of our gullets and bellies without worshipping them.
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A novelist who writes nothing for 10 years finds his reputation rising. Because I keep on producing books they say there must be something wrong with this fellow.
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Much of writing might be described as mental pregnancy with successive difficult deliveries.
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There is romance, the genuine glinting stuff, in typewriters, and not merely in their development from clumsy giants into agile dwarfs, but in the history of their manufacture, which is filled with raids, battles, lonely pioneers, great gambles, hope, fear, despair, triumph. If some of our novels could be written by the typewriters instead of on them, how much better they would be.
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We plan, we toil, we suffer - in the hope of what? A camel-load of idol's eyes? The title deeds of Radio City? The empire of Asia? A trip to the moon? No, no, no, no. Simply to wake just in time to smell coffee and bacon and eggs.
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