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The doctrine of immortality rests upon human affection. We love; therefore, we wish to live.
Robert Green Ingersoll
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Our desire for immortality stems from our capacity to love and form connections with others.

In this quote, Robert Green Ingersoll suggests that the belief in an afterlife or immortality is fundamentally linked to our emotional connections with others. The idea is that love fuels our longing for eternity, as we seek to preserve the relationships and affections we hold dear, motivating our desire for continued existence beyond physical life.

Themes

ImmortalityLoveHuman AffectionExistenceRelationships

In practice

Example use cases

This quote can be used in a speech about the significance of love in our lives.

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I believe that there is something far nobler than loyalty to any particular man. Loyalty to the truth as we perceive it - loyalty to our duty as we know it - loyalty to the ideals of our brain and heart - is, to my mind, far greater and far nobler than loyalty to the life of any particular man or God. . . .
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Quote by Robert Green Ingersoll | QuoteProject