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One cricket said to another -_x000D_ _x000D_ come, let us be ridiculous, and say love!_x000D_ _x000D_ love love love love love_x000D_ _x000D_ let us be absurd, woman, and say hate!_x000D_ _x000D_ hate hate hate hate hate_x000D_ _x000D_ and then let us be angelic_x000D_ _x000D_ and say nothing.
Conrad Aiken
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote celebrates the extremes of human emotion, suggesting that both love and hate can lead to a higher state of being by embracing absurdity.

In this quote, Conrad Aiken uses the dialogue between two crickets to explore the nature of human emotions. By calling for the expression of love and hate in an exaggerated manner, he hints at the absurdity of these feelings and suggests that there's something divine in choosing silence over the chaotic extremes of emotion. Ultimately, it reflects on how the acknowledgment of love and hate can lead to a deeper understanding of human experience and a more profound connection with oneself.

Themes

LoveHateAbsurdityEmotionSilence

In practice

Example use cases

During a poetry reading, to illustrate the range of human emotions.

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