Ask a man which way he is going to vote, and he will probably tell you. Ask him, however, why, and vagueness is all.
Bernard LevinRead
No amount of manifest absurdity... could deter those who wanted to believe from believing.
Interpretation
People will cling to their beliefs regardless of contradictory evidence.
This quote reflects on the human tendency to hold onto beliefs even in the face of clear evidence that those beliefs might be irrational or absurd. It highlights the power of conviction and faith, suggesting that the desire to believe can overcome logic and reason.
In practice
In a discussion about the power of faith, this quote can illustrate how beliefs endure despite evidence to the contrary.
Ask a man which way he is going to vote, and he will probably tell you. Ask him, however, why, and vagueness is all.
What has happened to architecture since the second world war that the only passers-by who can contemplate it without pain are those equipped with a white stick and a dog?
If we expected self-reliance of family groups, if we expected hardiness and resilience and initiative on the part of individuals, and if we rewarded initiative instead of dependence on government, we would not only ameliorate many of the family-related social problems we see at present, but we would also reduce our vulnerability to terrorism. People who are hardy, resilient, and self reliant are a lot harder to terrorize.
It is not enough for me to ask question; I want to know how to answer the one question that seems to encompass everything I face: What am I here for?
Time is not a thing, thus nothing which is, and yet it remains constant in its passing away without being something temporal like the beings in time.
I didn't think of myself as an outsider because of my race because... where I grew up I was the same race as almost everyone else... It is true that I noticed things that no one else seemed to notice. And I think only people who are outsiders do this.
Perhaps our greatest distinction as a species is our capacity, unique among animals, to make counter-evolutionary choices.
Then she saw a star fall, leaving behind it a bright streak of fire. βSomeone is dying,β thought the little girl, for her old grandmother, the only one who had ever loved her, and who was now dead, had told her that when a star falls, a soul was going up to God.
I never could bear the idea of anyone's expecting something from me. It always made me want to do just the opposite.
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