He awoke at six, as usual. He needed no alarm clock. He was already comprehensively alarmed.
Interpretation
This quote reflects the idea of being mentally alert and aware of one's surroundings without needing external prompts.
In this quote, Martin Amis illustrates the state of heightened awareness and preparedness that one can possess naturally, suggesting that certain individuals are so attuned to their environment and responsibilities that they do not require external stimuli, like an alarm clock, to wake them up. It emphasizes an inner sense of urgency and engagement with life's demands, showcasing a deeper understanding of personal consciousness and vigilance.
In practice
You can use this quote in a motivational speech about self-awareness and personal responsibility.
Oh Christ, the exhaustion of not knowing anything. It's so tiring and hard on the nerves. It really takes it out of you, not knowing anything. You're given comedy and miss all the jokes. Every hour you get weaker. Sometimes, as I sit alone in my flat in London and stare at the window, I think how dismal it is, how heavy, to watch the rain and not know why it falls.
Sometimes I feel that life is passing me by, not slowly either, but with ropes of steam and spark - spattered wheels and a hoarse roar of power or terror. It's passing, yet I'm the one who's doing all the moving.
You know how it is when two souls meet in a burst of ecstatic volubility, with hearts tickling to hear and to tell, to know everything, to reveal everything, the shared reverence for the other's otherness, a feeling of solitude radiantly snapped by full *contact* - all that?
All my adult life I have been searching for the right adjective to describe my father's peculiarly aggressive comic style. I recently settled on 'defamatory.'
Love is an abstract noun, something nebulous. And yet love turns out to be the only part of us that is solid, as the world turns upside down and the screen goes black.
Jane was my wicked stepmother: she was generous, affectionate and resourceful; she salvaged my schooling and I owe her an unknowable debt for that. One flaw: sometimes, early on, she would tell me things designed to make me think less of my mother, and I would wave her away, saying, Jane, this just backfires and makes me think less of you.
Every man can see things far off but is blind to what is near.
Never for the sake of peace and quiet deny your convictions.
The tighter you squeeze, the less you have.
Are you still to learn that the end and perfection of our victories is to avoid the vices and infirmities of those whom we subdue?
When I was an orphan, I was the richest kid at the orphanage because everyone else was complaining about not having anything. But when I discovered that you could get two cents for a Coca-Cola bottle, I would follow people around who were drinking it and ask them if they were almost through with it.
From the highest god to the meanest grass, the same power is present in all - whether manifested or not. We shall have to call forth that power by going from door to door.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.