They don't ask much of you. They only want you to hate the things you love and to love the things you despise.
Boris PasternakRead
Oh, how one wishes sometimes to escape from the meaningless dullness of human eloquence, from all those sublime phrases, to take refuge in nature, apparently so inarticulate, or in the wordlessness of long, grinding labor, of sound sleep, of true music, or of a human understanding rendered speechless by emotion!
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses a desire to escape from the complexities and emptiness of human communication in favor of the simplicity and purity found in nature and deep emotional experiences.
Boris Pasternak's quote reflects a longing for a deeper connection to life beyond the often convoluted nature of human expression. It highlights the contrast between the overcomplicated language of civilization and the direct, unspoken truths found in nature, labor, music, and profound emotional experiences. The author yearns for a refuge in the simplicity and authenticity that these elements provide, as they evoke feelings that words sometimes fail to convey.
Themes
NatureEmotionEscapeCommunicationMusicUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech on the importance of nature, one might quote Pasternak to emphasize the need to reconnect with simpler forms of expression.
More from Boris Pasternak
All quotes →Even so, one step from my grave, I believe that cruelty, spite, The powers of darkness will in time, Be crushed by the spirit of light.
Boris PasternakRead
He is her glory. Any woman could say it. For every one of them, God is in her child. Mothers of great men must have been familiar with this feeling, but then, all women are mothers of great men -- it isn't their fault if life disappoints them later.
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Our evenings are farewells. Our parties are testaments. So that the secret stream of suffering. May warm the cold of life.
Boris PasternakRead
The most extraordinary discoveries are made when the artist is overwhelmed by what he has to say.
Boris PasternakRead
They loved each other, not driven by necessity, by the "blaze of passion" often falsely ascribed to love. They loved each other because everything around them willed it, the trees and the clouds and the sky over their heads and the earth under their feet.
Boris PasternakRead
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