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
There are not many persons who know what wonders are opened to them in the stories and visions of their youth; for when as children we listen and dream, we think but half-formed thoughts, and when as men we try to remember, we are dulled and prosaic with the poison of life.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on how the imaginative dreams of childhood can fade into dullness in adulthood.
H. P. Lovecraft emphasizes the contrast between the unbounded wonder and imagination of childhood and the often mundane perspective of adulthood. He suggests that as we grow older, our experiences and responsibilities can dull our ability to recall the vivid dreams and stories that once filled our youthful minds, leading to a loss of the wonderment that characterized our early years.
Themes
YouthWonderImaginationAdultDreams
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about creativity, one might reference Lovecraft's view to inspire the audience to reconnect with their imaginative origins.
More from H. P. Lovecraft
All quotes →I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men.
H. P. LovecraftRead
Searchers after horror haunt strange, far places.
H. P. LovecraftRead
The process of delving into the black abyss is to me the keenest form of fascination.
H. P. LovecraftRead
No new horror can be more terrible than the daily torture of the commonplace.
H. P. LovecraftRead
I am, indeed, an absolute materialist so far as actual belief goes; with not a shred of credence in any form of supernaturalism—religion, spiritualism, transcendentalism, metempsychosis, or immortality.
H. P. LovecraftRead
Similar quotes
Scarcely any degree of judgment is sufficient to restrain the imagination from magnifying that on which it is long detained
Samuel JohnsonRead
How often do we sigh for opportunities for doing good, whilst we neglect the openings of Providence in little things, which would frequently lead to the accomplishment of most important usefulness. Good is done by degrees. However small in proportion the benefit which follows individual attempts to do good, a great deal may thus be accomplished by perseverance, even in the midst of discouragements and disappointments.
George CrabbeRead
Persuade thyself that imperfection and inconvenience are the natural lot of mortals, and there will be no room for discontent, neither for despair.
Ieyasu TokugawaRead
If we treasure our own experience and regard it as real, we must also treasure other people's experience.
John PolanyiRead
People's dreams are made out of what they do all day. The same way a dog that runs after rabbits will dream of rabbits. It's what you do that makes your soul, not the other way around.
Barbara KingsolverRead
I have lived a long time, and one thing I have come to see is that one is well served by a degree of both humility and charity when judging the inner workings of another person's heart
Khaled HosseiniRead