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... one reads, above all, to prevent oneself thinking.
Aldous Huxley
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Reading serves as a distraction from our own thoughts.

In this quote, Aldous Huxley suggests that reading can often act as a form of escapism, allowing individuals to avoid confronting their own thoughts and feelings. This reflects on the nature of literature as both a tool for gaining knowledge and a way to distract oneself from personal introspection.

Themes

ReadingThoughtsDistractionLiteratureEscapism

In practice

Example use cases

During a book club discussion about literature's role in our lives.

More from Aldous Huxley

To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.
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Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.
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In the course of history many more people have died for their drink and their dope than have died for their religion or their country.
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On no account brood over your wrongdoing. Rolling in the muck is not the best way of getting clean.
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No man ever dared to manifest his boredom so insolently as does a Siamese tomcat when he yawns in the face of his amorously importunate wife.
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The leech's kiss, the squid's embrace, The prurient ape's defiling touch: And do you like the human race? No, not much.
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Quote by Aldous Huxley | QuoteProject