Some deny the existence of misery by pointing to the sun; he denies the existence of the sun by pointing to misery.
Franz KafkaRead
The nonexistent is whatever we have not sufficiently desired. Only after death, only in solitude, does a man’s true nature emerge. In death, as on the chimney sweep’s Saturday night, the soot gets washed from his body.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the nature of desire and the reveal of true character in solitude and death.
Franz Kafka suggests that what we often think is absent or nonexistent in our lives is actually a result of our lack of desire for it. He posits that only through the experiences of death and solitude can one truly uncover and understand their essence, similar to how a chimney sweep removes soot to reveal a clean state.
Themes
DesireTrue NatureSolitudeDeathSelf-Discovery
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a philosophical discussion about the nature of existence and self-awareness.
More from Franz Kafka
All quotes →One can disintegrate the world by means of very strong light. For weak eyes the world becomes solid, for still weaker eyes it seems to develop fists, for eyes weaker still it becomes shamefaced and smashes anyone who dares to gaze upon it.
Franz KafkaRead
But Gregor understood easily that it was not only consideration for him which prevented their moving, for he could easily have been transported in a suitable crate with a few air holes; what mainly prevented the family from moving was their complete hopelessness and the thought that they had been struck by a misfortune as none of their relatives and acquaintances had ever been hit.
Franz KafkaRead
Association with human beings lures one into self-observation.
Franz KafkaRead
A non-writing writer is a monster courting insanity.
Franz KafkaRead
The ulterior motives with which you absorb and assimilate Evil are not your own but those of Evil. _x000D_ The animal wrests the whip from its master and whips itself in order to become master, not knowing that this is only a fantasy produced by a new knot in the master's whiplash.
Franz KafkaRead
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