It seemed to be a necessary ritual that he should prepare himself for sleep by meditating under the solemnity of the night sky... a mysterious transaction between the infinity of the soul and the infinity of the universe.
Victor HugoRead
Nature is pitiless; she never withdraws her flowers, her music, her fragrance, and her sunlight from before human cruelty or suffering.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Nature remains indifferent to human suffering and continues to offer beauty and resources.
In this quote, Victor Hugo highlights the relentless and impartial nature of the natural world. Despite the cruelty and suffering that humans may inflict upon each other, nature continues to provide its beauty and bounty without reservation, symbolizing resilience and the continuity of life regardless of human actions.
Themes
NatureSufferingCrueltyIndifferenceBeauty
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about environmental conservation to emphasize the beauty of nature even in tough times.
More from Victor Hugo
All quotes βWhen two mouths, made sacred by love, draw near to each other to create, it is impossible, that above that ineffable kiss there should not be a thrill in the immense mystery of the stars.
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At that moment of love, a moment when passion is absolutely silent under omnipotence of ecstasy, Marius, pure seraphic Marius, would have been more capable of visiting a woman of the streets than of raising Cosetteβs dress above the ankle. Once on a moonlit night, Cosette stopped to pick up something from the ground, her dress loosened and revealed the swelling of her breasts. Marius averted his eyes.
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Thought is the work of the intellect, reverie is its self-indulgence. To substitute day-dreaming for thought is to confuse a poison with a source of nourishment.
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Taste is the common sense of genius.
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Forget not, never forget that you have promised me to use this silver to become an honest man.... Jean Valjean, my brother: you belong no longer to evil, but to good. It is your soul that I am buying for you. I withdraw it from dark thoughts and from the spirit of perdition, and I give it to God!
Victor HugoRead
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