Blow the candle out, I don't need to see what my thoughts look like.
These young people naturally grow up with ideas different from ours, for they are born for times when we shall no longer be here
Interpretation
What this quote means
The younger generation develops unique perspectives shaped by their own times, which differ from those of their predecessors.
Emile Zola's quote reflects on the inevitability of generational change, implying that each subsequent generation will form its own ideas and beliefs that may contradict those of their predecessors. This highlights the importance of understanding youth perspectives as they adapt to the ever-evolving world, and acknowledges that the values and thoughts of the past may not resonate in future contexts.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion about societal evolution, someone can use this quote to illustrate how young people's viewpoints differ from older generations.
More from Emile Zola
All quotes βI believe that all is illusion and vanity outside the treasure of truths slowly accumulated, and which will never again be lost. I believe that the sum of these truths, always increasing, will at last confer on man incalculable power and peace, if not happiness. Yes, I believe in the final triumph of life.
A ruined man fell from her hands like a ripe fruit, to lie rotting on the ground.
Oh, the fools, like a lot of good little schoolboys, scared to death of anything they've been taught is wrong!
Did not one spend the first half of one's days in dreams of happiness and the second half in regrets and terrors?
They dared not peer down into their own natures, down into the feverish confusion that filled their minds with a kind of dense, acrid mist.
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My whole strength lies in prayer and sacrifice, these are my invincible arms; they can move hearts far better than words, I know it by experience.
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