Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.
John SteinbeckRead
I am happy to report that in the war between reality and romance, reality is not the stronger.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Reality and romance often conflict, but romance holds a unique power over our perceptions of life.
In this quote, Steinbeck conveys the idea that while reality can be harsh and unforgiving, the allure and depth of romance can often triumph over it. The quote suggests that our romantic notions and dreams can shape our lives in ways that reality alone cannot, highlighting the importance of imagination and emotional experiences in the human condition.
Themes
RealityRomanceLoveEmotionPerception
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be shared during a wedding speech to emphasize the power of love.
More from John Steinbeck
All quotes βAt one point, as Samuel urges Adam to raise his boys well regardless of the blood that might be in them, Adam tells him, "You can't make a race horse of a pig." Samuel replies, "No, but you can make a very fast pig.
John SteinbeckRead
And when that crop grew, and was harvested, no man had crumbled a hot clod in his fingers and let the earth sift past his fingertips. No man had touched the seed, or lusted for the growth. Men ate what they had not raised, had no connection with the bread. The land bore under iron, and under iron gradually died; for it was not loved or hated, it had no prayers or curses.
John SteinbeckRead
The comfortable people in tight houses felt pity at first, and then distaste, and finally hatred for the migrant people.
John SteinbeckRead
People do not want advice - they want corroboration.
John SteinbeckRead
It is one of the triumphs of the human that he can know a thing and still not believe it.
John SteinbeckRead
Similar quotes
A 'fair' fight between non-equals is not fair, and being blind to power is an implicit endorsement of the powerful.
Zeynep TufekciRead
There are horrors beyond life's edge that we do not suspect, and once in a while man's evil prying calls them just within our range.
H. P. LovecraftRead
Do what you will. Even if you tear yourself apart, most people will continue doing the same things.
Marcus AureliusRead
What if God were not exactly truth, and if this could be proved? And if he were instead the vanity, the desire for power, the ambitions, the fear, and the enraptured and terrified folly of mankind?
Friedrich NietzscheRead
Another belief of mine; that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise.
Margaret AtwoodRead
Let men learn that a legislature is not 'our God upon earth,' though, by the authority they ascribe to it, and the things they expect from it, they would seem to think it is. Let them learn rather that it is an institution serving a purely temporary purpose, whose power, when not stolen, is at the best borrowed.
Herbert SpencerRead