Why do we as a people choose to live in beautiful and risky places? Beautiful places are relatively dangerous; the forces that made them beautiful are the same forces that will ultimately destroy them.
Simon WinchesterRead
Nature is not evil. The world occasionally shrugs its shoulders, and people get knocked off. The earth, for geological reasons that are well known, is a fairly risky place to live. To be evil, you have to have intent. Any remarkable natural happening in which no human will is employed cannot be regarded as evil.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Nature itself is not malevolent; it operates according to its own laws, which can sometimes be harsh.
This quote by Simon Winchester suggests that natural disasters or phenomena should not be attributed moral qualities such as evil, as they occur without intent. It emphasizes that the earth, governed by geological forces, can pose risks, but these risks are part of nature's indifferent operations rather than acts of malevolence.
Themes
NatureEvilIntentNatural PhenomenaGeological Risks
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about climate change, one might refer to this quote to emphasize that nature operates without moral intent.
More from Simon Winchester
All quotes →The most difficult task for anyone wandering through a foreign land with the hope of gaining some insight into it is the profound need to come to terms with the lives and thoughts of strangers.
Simon WinchesterRead
Similar quotes
Basically, I think 21st century conservation is moving toward preserving ecosystems by dealing with the needs of people.
Edward NortonRead
Her concern with landscapes and living creatures was passionate. This concern, feebly called, "the love of nature" seemed to Shevek to be something much broader than love. There are souls, he thought, whose umbilicus has never been cut. They never got weaned from the universe. They do not understand death as an enemy; they look forward to rotting and turning into humus. It was strange to see Takver take a leaf into her hand, or even a rock. She became an extension of it, it of her.
Ursula K. Le GuinRead
Bring awareness to the many subtle sounds of nature - The rustling of leaves in the wind, Raindrops falling, The humming of an insect, The first birdsong at dawn.
Eckhart TolleRead
White in the moon the long road lies.
A. E. HousmanRead
If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.
Albert EinsteinRead
I love to smell flowers in the dark," she said. "You get hold of their soul then.
Lucy Maud MontgomeryRead