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
I believe in nothing that I cannot touch, kiss, embrace.... The rest is only hearsay.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes a belief in tangible experiences over abstract concepts or ideas.
Edward Abbey's quote challenges the validity of ideas and beliefs that cannot be directly experienced through physical sensations. By prioritizing what can be touched or embraced, Abbey critiques reliance on hearsay and the ethereal nature of certain beliefs, advocating for a philosophy grounded in concrete reality.
Themes
BeliefTangibleExperiencePhilosophyReality
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about the nature of belief in a philosophy class.
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
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
Man's deliberate destruction of his own habitat -- planet Earth -- could serve as a mighty theme for a mighty book worthy of a modern Melville or Tolstoy. But our best fictioneers confine themselves to domestic drama -- soap opera with literary trimmings.
Edward AbbeyRead
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