Some deny the existence of misery by pointing to the sun; he denies the existence of the sun by pointing to misery.
Franz KafkaRead
How pathetically scanty my self-knowledge is compared with, say, my knowledge of my room. There is no such thing as observation of the inner world, as there is of the outer world.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the contrast between our understanding of our inner selves and our knowledge of the external world.
Franz Kafka's quote emphasizes the disparity between our awareness of our physical surroundings and our true understanding of our inner selves. While we can easily observe and know our environment, the complexities of our inner thoughts, emotions, and consciousness often remain elusive and poorly understood, highlighting the challenges of self-awareness and introspection.
Themes
Self-KnowledgeInner WorldOuter WorldIntrospectionSelf-Awareness
In practice
Example use cases
In a personal development seminar to encourage attendees to reflect on their true selves.
More from Franz Kafka
All quotes →One can disintegrate the world by means of very strong light. For weak eyes the world becomes solid, for still weaker eyes it seems to develop fists, for eyes weaker still it becomes shamefaced and smashes anyone who dares to gaze upon it.
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But Gregor understood easily that it was not only consideration for him which prevented their moving, for he could easily have been transported in a suitable crate with a few air holes; what mainly prevented the family from moving was their complete hopelessness and the thought that they had been struck by a misfortune as none of their relatives and acquaintances had ever been hit.
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Association with human beings lures one into self-observation.
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A non-writing writer is a monster courting insanity.
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The ulterior motives with which you absorb and assimilate Evil are not your own but those of Evil. _x000D_ The animal wrests the whip from its master and whips itself in order to become master, not knowing that this is only a fantasy produced by a new knot in the master's whiplash.
Franz KafkaRead
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