Living substance conquers the frenzy of destruction only in the ecstasy of procreation.
Walter BenjaminRead
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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Truth should be expressed in a way that surprises and engages the audience, rather than merely relayed as it was originally conceived.
Walter Benjamin suggests that mere verbal expression of truth lacks depth and richness. He argues that truth should not be delivered in a straightforward manner, as it diminishes its impact. Instead, it needs to be presented in an engaging way that jolts the audience, whether through chaos, music, or urgent pleas, to evoke a deeper understanding and appreciation of its essence.
Themes
TruthExpressionArtImpactEngagement
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech on creativity, one might use this quote to emphasize the need for innovative expression in art.
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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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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How many cities have revealed themselves to me in the marches I undertook in the pursuit of books!
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For many centuries, even thousands of years, patriotism worked quite well. Of course, it led to wars an so forth, but we shouldn't focus too much on the bad.
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Our enmity toward God takes on many labels, such as rebellion, hard-heartedness, stiff-neckedness, unrepentant, puffed up, easily offended, and sign seekers. The proud wish God would agree with them. They aren't interested in changing their opinions to agree with God's.
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If you are an Arabic-speaking, Greek-Orthodox going to a French school it makes you deeply sceptical if you have to listen to three different accounts of the Crusades - one from the Muslim side, one from the Greek side and one from the Catholic side.
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