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“If only there could be an invention that bottled up a memory, like scent. And it never faded, and it never got stale. And then, when one wanted it, the bottle could be uncorked, and it would be like living the moment all over again.”
― Rebecca
― Rebecca
“Then as to churches, they are good, I suppose, else wouldn't good men uphold' em. But they are not altogether necessary. They call 'em the temples of the Lord; but, Judith, the whole 'arth is a temple of the Lord to such as have the right mind. Neither forts nor churches make people happier of themselves. Moreover, all is contradiction in the settlements, while all is concord in the woods. Forts and churches almost always go together, and yet they're downright contradictions; churches being for peace, and forts for war. No, no--give me the strong places of the wilderness, which is the trees, and the churches, too, which are arbors raised by the hand of nature.”
―
―
“There are no conditions to which a person cannot grow accustomed, especially if he sees that everyone around him lives in the same way.”
― Anna Karenina
― Anna Karenina
“Having then for the first time clearly understood that before every man, and before himself, there lay only suffering, death, and eternal oblivion, he had concluded that to live under such conditions was impossible; that one must either explain life to oneself so that it does not seem to be an evil mockery by some sort of devil, or one must shoot oneself.
But he had done neither the one nor the other, yet he continued to live, think, and feel, had even at that very time got married, experienced many joys, and been happy whenever he was not thinking of the meaning of his life.
What did that show? It showed that he had lived well, but thought badly.”
―
But he had done neither the one nor the other, yet he continued to live, think, and feel, had even at that very time got married, experienced many joys, and been happy whenever he was not thinking of the meaning of his life.
What did that show? It showed that he had lived well, but thought badly.”
―
“The passion for naming things is an odd human trait. It is strange that men always feel so much more at ease when they have put appellations on the things around them and that a wild, new region almost seems familiar and subdued once enough names have been used on it, even though in fact it is not changed in the slightest. Or, on second thought, it is perhaps not really strange. The urge to name must be as old as the human race, as old as speech which is one of the really fundamental characteristics by which we rise above the brutes, and thus a basic and essential part of the human spirit or soul. The naming fallacy is common enough even in science. Many a scientist claims to have explained some phenomenon when in truth all he has done is to give it a name. ”
―
―
Reason Reigns & Royal Serf
— 175 members
— last activity Jan 01, 2010 07:38AM
A group about my novels and other writings, and about friends and other readers. Reason Reigns and Royal Serf - A Hearing http://www.goodreads.com/a ...more
All Things Medieval
— 523 members
— last activity Dec 14, 2022 08:31PM
where people can talk about anything and everything Medieval from known historical figures to life and times of the period to favorite authors of the ...more
Richard III
— 491 members
— last activity May 02, 2020 08:31AM
A group for those goodreads members and Ricardians (or not!) who would like to discuss all things Richard III. Clarification April 2017. The purpose ...more
Rachel’s 2025 Year in Books
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