When friendship disappears then there is a space left open to that awful loneliness of the outside world which is like the cold space between the planets. It is an air in which men perish utterly.
Hilaire BellocRead
Physicians of the utmost fame, Were called at once; but when they came They answered, as they took their fees, 'There is no Cure for this Disease.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the futility of relying on experts when confronting certain profound truths or issues that they cannot resolve.
Hilaire Belloc's quote emphasizes that not all problems have solutions, regardless of how esteemed the experts are. In this case, it points to a 'disease' that the physicians cannot cure, suggesting that some matters are beyond the reach of human capability and understanding, thus inviting a more philosophical reflection on acceptance and the limitations of knowledge and medicine.
Themes
DiseaseCurePhilosophyKnowledgeLimitations
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the limits of medical science, one could reference Belloc's quote to emphasize that some issues cannot be solved.
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It has been discovered that with a dull urban population, all formed under a mechanical system of State education, a suggestion or command, however senseless and unreasoned, will be obeyed if it be sufficiently repeated.
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Write as the wind blows and command all words like an army!
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An institute run with such knavish imbecility that if it were not the work of God it would not last a fortnight.
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When I am dead, I hope it may be said: His sins were scarlet, but his books were read.
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