To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.
Aldous HuxleyRead
Words can be like X-rays if you use them properly -- they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced.
Interpretation
Words have the power to deeply impact and influence when used thoughtfully.
Aldous Huxley suggests that words possess a profound capability to penetrate the barriers of understanding and perception. When articulated effectively, they can reveal truths and evoke emotions in listeners, much like an X-ray unveils what is hidden beneath the surface. This underscores the importance of communication and the responsibility that comes with it.
In practice
In a speech about the impact of literature, one could cite Huxley's quote to emphasize how words can reveal deep truths.
To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.
Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.
In the course of history many more people have died for their drink and their dope than have died for their religion or their country.
On no account brood over your wrongdoing. Rolling in the muck is not the best way of getting clean.
No man ever dared to manifest his boredom so insolently as does a Siamese tomcat when he yawns in the face of his amorously importunate wife.
The leech's kiss, the squid's embrace, The prurient ape's defiling touch: And do you like the human race? No, not much.
But the upside of painful knowledge is so much greater than the downside of blissful ignorance.
A million candles have burned themselves out. Still I read on. (Montresor)
When you take your attention into the present moment, a certain alertness arises. You become more conscious of what's around you, but also, strangely, a sense of presence that is both within and without.
Affliction comes to us, not to make us sad but sober; not to make us sorry but wise.
You'll never know how close you are to a million-dollar idea unless you're willing to listen.
I was trundling around with my inadequacies, and inner pain and loneliness. I yearned, desperately, to be something. I yearned to get out from where I was ... some deep discontent within myself, actually some deep dislike of myself.
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