When it came night, the white waves paced to and fro in the moonlight, and the wind brought the sound of the great sea's voice to the men on shore, and they felt that they could then be interpreters.
Stephen CraneRead
Tell her this And more,β That the king of the seas Weeps too, old, helpless man. The bustling fates Heap his hands with corpses Until he stands like a child With surplus of toys.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the burdens of life and the often hidden struggles beneath a facade of power or strength.
In this quote, Stephen Crane explores the theme of sorrow and helplessness experienced even by those in positions of power, such as 'the king of the seas.' It highlights the emotional weight that comes with responsibility and the accumulation of loss, suggesting that even those who appear strong can feel like 'a child' overwhelmed by the vastness of their grief and the complexity of their existence.
Themes
SorrowBurdenPowerGriefHelplessness
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about resilience, one might use this quote to emphasize that even powerful figures face internal struggles.
More from Stephen Crane
All quotes βI saw a man pursuing the horizon
Stephen CraneRead
Two or three angels Came near to the earth. They saw a fat church. Little black streams of people Came and went in continually. And the angels were puzzled To know why the people went thus, And why they stayed so long within.
Stephen CraneRead
Sometimes, the most profound of awakenings come wrapped in the quietest of moments.
Stephen CraneRead
Over the river a golden ray of sun came through the hosts of leaden rain clouds.
Stephen CraneRead
A singular disadvantage of the sea lies in the fact that after successfully surmounting one wave you discover another behind it just as important and just as nervously anxious to do something effective in the way of swamping boats. In a ten-foot dinghy one can get an idea of the resources of the sea in the line of waves that is not probable to the average experience, which is never at sea in a dinghy.
Stephen CraneRead
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