"There's got to be more to life than just living," Foyle said to the robot. "Then find it for yourself, sir. Don't ask the world to stop moving because you have doubts." "Why can't we all move forward together?" "Because you're all different. You're not lemmings. Some must lead, and hope that the rest will follow." "Who leads?" "The men who must... driven men, compelled men." "Freak men." "You're all freaks, sir. But you always have been freaks. Life is a freak. That's its hope and glory."
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of finding personal meaning in life and accepting the individuality in our pursuits.
In this dialogue, the characters explore the notion that life should be about seeking deeper meaning rather than merely existing. The robot's response suggests that individuals have the power to discover their purpose and that life's richness comes from its inherent unpredictability and diversity. The idea that some individuals are destined to lead while others follow reflects the complexities of human nature and how ambition and drive shape our destinies.
In practice
In a motivational speech about personal growth, one could quote this to inspire others to seek deeper meaning in their lives.
This was a Golden Age, a time of high adventure, rich living and hard dying... but nobody thought so. This was a future of fortune and theft, pillage and rapine, culture and vice... but nobody admitted it. This was an age of extremes, a fascinating century of freaks... but nobody loved it.
Don't ask the world to stop moving because you have doubts.
Not, how much of my money will I give to God, but, how much of God’s money will I keep for myself?
Provided that any of those neighbours sing out of tune or have boots that squeak, or double chins, or odd clothes, the patient will quite easily believe that their religion must therefore be somehow ridiculous.
If I deny the authority of the State when it presents my tax bill, it will soon take and waste all my property, and so harass me and my children without end. This is hard, this makes it impossible for a man to live honestly, and at the same time comfortably, in outward respects.
Earth has one angel less and heaven one more, since yesterday.
The Great Way is not difficult for those who have no preferences.
It is not surprising that liberals believed in progress. The idea of progress justified the entire transition from feudalism to capitalism. It legitimated the breaking of the remaining opposition to the commodification of everything, and it tended to wipe away all the negatives of capitalism on the grounds that the benefits outweighed, by far, the harm.
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