So much of the news was invented for propaganda.
Elsa MoranteRead
Man, by his very nature, tends to give himself an explanation of the world into which he is born. And this is what distinguishes him from the other species. Every individual, even the least intelligent, the lowest of outcasts, from childhood on gives himself some explanation of the world. And with it he manages to live. And without it, he would sink into madness.
Interpretation
Humans seek to understand their existence and the world around them, which is essential for mental stability.
This quote by Elsa Morante emphasizes the innate human drive to interpret and make sense of the world. It suggests that every individual, regardless of their intelligence or social status, crafts personal explanations of their reality as a means to cope with life. Morante posits that this quest for understanding is what prevents humanity from descending into chaos or madness, highlighting the fundamental role of self-explanation in human psychology.
In practice
This quote can be used in a philosophical discussion about the nature of human consciousness.
So much of the news was invented for propaganda.
If we seek something, that same thing is seeking us.
The moon of Mahomet Arose, and it shall set; While, blazoned as on heaven's immortal noon, The cross leads generations on.
I see God now as an unimaginative writer of popular fictions, someone who builds stories around sadistic and graceless plots, narratives that exist only to express His terror of a woman's power to choose who and how to love, to redefine love as she sees fit, not as God thinks it ought to be. The author is unworthy of His own characters.
If what we need to dream, to move our spirits most deeply and directly toward and through promise, is discounted as a luxury, then we give up the core -- the fountain -- of our power, our womanness; we give up the future of our worlds. (From "Poetry is Not a Luxury")
Adventures come to the adventurous, and mysterious things fall in the way of those who, with wonder and imagination, are on the watch for them; but the majority of people go past the doors that are half ajar, thinking them closed, and fail to notice the faint stirrings of the great curtain that hangs ever in the form of appearances between them and the world of causes behind.
When He gives, He shows you His Kindness; when He deprives, He shows you His power. And in all that, He is making Himself known to you and coming to you with His gentleness.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.