It is by all odds the loftiest of cities. It even managed to reach the highest point in the sky at the lowest moment of the depression.
E. B. WhiteRead
Old age is a special problem for me because I've never been able to shed the mental image I have of myself - a lad of about 19.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the struggle of reconciling one's self-perception with the reality of aging.
E. B. Whiteβs quote captures the tension between the youthful self-image many people maintain and the inevitable reality of aging. It suggests that, despite physical changes, the inner self often remains stuck in a much younger phase, highlighting the complexity of identity and self-awareness in the context of time and experience.
Themes
AgingIdentitySelf-PerceptionYouthTime
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about embracing aging and personal growth.
More from E. B. White
All quotes βIt isn't silence you can cut with a knife any more, it's interchange of ideas. Intelligent discussion of practically everything is what is breaking up modern marriage.
E. B. WhiteRead
The main thing I try to do is write as clearly as I can. Because I have the greatest respect for the reader, and if he's going to the trouble of reading what I've written -- I'm a slow reader myself and I guess most people are -- why, the least I can do is make it as easy as possible for him to find out what I'm trying to say, trying to get at. I rewrite a good deal to make it clear.
E. B. WhiteRead
A good farmer is nothing more nor less than a handy man with a sense of humus.
E. B. WhiteRead
A despot doesn't fear eloquent writers preaching freedom- he fears a drunken poet who may crack a joke that will take hold.
E. B. WhiteRead
All writing is communication; creative writing is communication through revelation-it is the Self-escaping into the open.
E. B. WhiteRead
Similar quotes
All animals communicate. What's special about gossip is that it's not about the here and now. You don't gossip about lions. You don't gossip about clouds. You only gossip about other people. And once you do, you can keep track of many more people - this is the basis for forming larger communities.
Yuval Noah HarariRead
If you strike a child, take care that you strike it in anger, even at the risk of maiming it for life. A blow in cold blood neither can nor should be forgiven.
George Bernard ShawRead
Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are dead.
Aldous HuxleyRead
We all labour against our own cure, for death is the cure of all diseases.
Thomas BrowneRead
Everything I do is somehow rooted in humanity. It's always about people; it's always about ego. It's always about desperation. It's quite existential. You know, 'Am I leading a good life?' That might be because I'm an atheist, and I think this is all we've got, so you better be nice. And have fun.
Ricky GervaisRead
The bond between a man and his profession is similar to that which ties him to his country; it is just as complex, often ambivalent, and in general it is understood completely only when it is broken: by exile or emigration in the case of one's country, by retirement in the case of a trade or profession.
Primo LeviRead