You write not for children but for yourself. And if by good fortune children enjoy what you enjoy, why then you are a writer of children's books.
Arthur RansomeRead
The desire to build a house is the tired wish of a man content thenceforward with a single anchorage. The desire to build a boat is the desire of youth, unwilling yet to accept the idea of a final resting place.
Interpretation
This quote contrasts the settled nature of adulthood with the adventurous spirit of youth.
In this quote, Arthur Ransome highlights the distinction between two desires: the wish to build a house, which symbolizes stability and acceptance of a settled life, and the yearning to build a boat, which represents the youthful desire for exploration and adventure. This reflects the different stages of life, where maturity often comes with a sense of contentment, while youth is characterized by a desire for freedom and discovery, resisting the notion of settling down.
In practice
In a motivational speech about embracing change and seeking new experiences.
You write not for children but for yourself. And if by good fortune children enjoy what you enjoy, why then you are a writer of children's books.
Deep within every man there lies the dread of being alone in the world, forgotten by God, overlooked among the tremendous household of millions and millions.
The only thing that makes life possible is permanent, intolerable uncertainty; not knowing what comes next.
George, it's impossible to correct a defective reality-orientation overnight.
But yet I'll make assurance double sure, and take a bond of fate: thou shalt not live.
As for myself: I had come to the conclusion that there was nothing sacred about myself or any human being, that we were all machines, doomed to collide and collide and collide. For want of anything better to do, we became fans of collisions. Sometimes I wrote well about collisions, which meant I was a writing machine in good repair. Sometimes I wrote badly, which meant I was a writing machine in bad repair. I no more harbored sacredness than did a Pontiac, a mousetrap, or a South Bend Lathe.
There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured with what is right in America.
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