Married couples who quarrel bitterly every day may really need each other as deeply as those who appear to be desperately in love.
Edward AbbeyRead
Our modern industrial economy takes a mountain covered with trees, lakes, running streams and transforms it into a mountain of junk, garbage, slime pits, and debris.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote criticizes the negative impact of industrialization on natural landscapes.
Edward Abbey's quote highlights the destructive transformation of natural environments due to industrialization. He contrasts the beauty of untouched nature, represented by mountains, trees, and clear waters, with the pollution and waste created by industrial processes, underscoring the environmental degradation that results from human activity.
Themes
IndustrializationNatureEnvironmentPollutionDestruction
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about environmental conservation, one might refer to Abbey's quote to illustrate the consequences of neglecting nature.
More from Edward Abbey
All quotes βI love America because it is a confused, chaotic mess - and I hope we can keep it this way for at least another thousand years. The permissive society is the free society.
Edward AbbeyRead
If it's knowledge and wisdom you want, then seek out the company of those who do real work for an honest purpose.
Edward AbbeyRead
The earth is real. Only a fool, milking his cow, denies the cow's reality.
Edward AbbeyRead
I believe in nothing that I cannot touch, kiss, embrace.... The rest is only hearsay.
Edward AbbeyRead
Why can't we simply borrow what is useful to us from Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, especially Zen, as we borrow from Christianity, science, American Indian traditions and world literature in general, including philosophy, and let the rest go hang? Borrow what we need but rely principally upon our own senses, common sense and daily living experience.
Edward AbbeyRead
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