Living substance conquers the frenzy of destruction only in the ecstasy of procreation.
Walter BenjaminRead
How many cities have revealed themselves to me in the marches I undertook in the pursuit of books!
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects how the quest for knowledge through reading can lead to new insights and experiences.
In this quote, Walter Benjamin expresses the profound connection between the pursuit of knowledge and the exploration of the world. He suggests that through reading and engaging with books, one can uncover new perspectives, ideas, and even a sense of place, as if cities themselves reveal their secrets to those who delve into literature and learning.
Themes
BooksLearningKnowledgeExplorationInsight
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about the importance of reading, this quote illustrates how much cities can teach us through books.
More from Walter Benjamin
All quotes →The illiterate of the future will not be the man who cannot read the alphabet, but the one who cannot take a photograph.
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If mythic violence is lawmaking, divine violence is law-destroying; if the former sets boundaries, the latter boundlessly destroys them; if mythic violence brings at once guilt and retribution, divine power only expiates; if the former threatens, the latter strikes; if the former is bloody, the latter is lethal without spilling blood
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Writers are really people who write books not because they are poor, but because they are dissatisfied with the books which they could buy but do not like.
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Nothing is poorer than a truth expressed as it was thought. Committed to writing in such cases, it is not even a bad photograph. Truth wants to be startled abruptly, at one stroke, from her self-immersion, whether by uproar, music or cries for help.
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I am unpacking my library. Yes I am. The books are not yet on the shelves, not yet touched by the mild boredom of order.
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He had been so busy getting away from the library, he hadn't paid attention to where he was going.
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