The premonition of madness is complicated by the fear of lucidity in madness, the fear of the moments of return and reunion... One would welcome chaos if one were not afraid of lights in it.
Emile M. CioranRead
Ambition is a drug that makes its addicts potential madmen.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Ambition can drive people to extreme actions, sometimes leading them to madness.
In this quote, Emile M. Cioran suggests that ambition has a powerful and potentially destructive effect on individuals. Much like a drug, ambition can possess individuals to the point of madness, compelling them to pursue their goals with an intensity that may overshadow rational thought or moral judgment. This warning highlights the dangers of unbridled ambition and the fine line between striving for success and becoming consumed by that desire.
Themes
AmbitionMadnessAddictionPotentialSuccessDesire
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a motivational speech about the balance of ambition and mental health.
More from Emile M. Cioran
All quotes βWe are afraid of the enormity of the possible.
Emile M. CioranRead
There was a time when time did not yet exist. β¦ The rejection of birth is nothing but the nostalgia for this time before time.
Emile M. CioranRead
A marvel that has nothing to offer, democracy is at once a nation's paradise and its tomb.
Emile M. CioranRead
Paradise was unendurable, otherwise the first man would have adapted to it; this world is no less so, since here we regret paradise or anticipate another one. What to do? Where to go? Do nothing and go nowhere, easy enough.
Emile M. CioranRead
It is not worth the bother of killing yourself, since you always kill yourself too late.
Emile M. CioranRead
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