No one's ever dared come out and say it before, but there's not a man among us that doesn't think it, that doesn't feel just as you do about her and the whole business - feel it somewhere down deep in his scared little soul.
Ken KeseyRead
His whole body shakes with the strain as he tries to lift something he knows he can't lift, something everybody knows he can't lift. But, for just a second, when we hear the cement grind at our feet, we think, by golly, he might do it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the struggle and determination to achieve the seemingly impossible, even when doubt exists.
In this quote by Ken Kesey, the imagery of a person straining to lift an unliftable weight symbolizes the human spirit's capacity to confront challenges that appear insurmountable. The moment of hope when we hear the cement grind beneath his feet serves as a testament to the belief that effort and determination can lead to unexpected outcomes, encouraging us to embrace challenges despite the apparent futility of our efforts.
Themes
DeterminationStruggleHopeHuman SpiritChallenge
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about overcoming obstacles.
More from Ken Kesey
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The job is to seek mystery, evoke mystery, plant a garden in which strange plants grow and mysteries bloom. The need for mystery is greater than the need for an answer.
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If this glorious birth to death hassle is the only hassle we are ever to have ..if our grand exhilarating fight of life is such a tragically short little scrap anyway,compared to the eons of rounds before and after-then why should one want to relinquish even a few precious seconds of it?
Ken KeseyRead
He was in his chair in the corner, resting a second before he came out for the next round -- in a long line of next rounds. The thing he was fighting, you couldn't whip it for good. All you could do was keep on whipping it, till you couldn't come out anymore and somebody else had to take your place.
Ken KeseyRead
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