A dream has power to poison sleep.
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
Cold hopes swarm like worms within our living clay.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the idea that unfulfilled desires and hopes can fester internally, much like decay, within our lives.
Percy Bysshe Shelley's quote suggests that our human experiences are often marred by unfulfilled dreams and aspirations, which can manifest as negativity or despair. The metaphor of 'cold hopes' implies that these hopes are not only unachieved but also lifeless, and 'swarm like worms' evokes an image of something creeping and unwanted, taking residence within our existence, ultimately impacting our lives in a detrimental way.
Themes
HopeDesirePhilosophyLifeNegativityDreams
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the challenges of unfulfilled goals, I might say, 'As Shelley suggests, cold hopes swarm like worms within our living clay.'
More from Percy Bysshe Shelley
All quotes βSenseless is the breast and cold _x000D_ _x000D_ Which relenting love would fold;_x000D_ _x000D_ Bloodless are the veins and chill _x000D_ _x000D_ Which the pulse of pain did fill; _x000D_ _x000D_ Every little living nerve _x000D_ _x000D_ That from bitter words did swerve _x000D_ _x000D_ Round the tortur'd lips and brow, _x000D_ _x000D_ Are like sapless leaflets now _x000D_ _x000D_ Frozen upon December's bough.
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
A sensitive plant in a garden grew,_x000D_ _x000D_ And the young winds fed it with silver dew,_x000D_ _x000D_ And it opened its fan_x000D_ _x000D_ like leaves to the light,_x000D_ _x000D_ and closed them beneath the kisses of night.
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
I am the daughter of Earth and Water, And the nursling of the Sky; I pass through the pores of the ocean and shores; I change, but I cannot die. For after the rain when with never a stain The pavilion of Heaven is bare, And the winds and sunbeams with their convex gleams Build up the blue dome of air, I silently laugh at my own cenotaph, And out of the caverns of rain, Like a child from the womb, like a ghost from the tomb, I arise and unbuild it again.
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
Ah, woe is me! Winter is come and gone. But grief returns with the revolving year.
Percy Bysshe ShelleyRead
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