When it came night, the white waves paced to and fro in the moonlight, and the wind brought the sound of the great sea's voice to the men on shore, and they felt that they could then be interpreters.
Stephen CraneRead
When the prophet, a complacent fat man, Arrived at the mountain-top He cried: "Woe to my knowledge! I intended to see good white lands And bad black lands— But the scene is grey.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the disillusionment with reality, showing that things are often not as clear-cut as we wish them to be.
In this quote by Stephen Crane, the prophet's lamentation about the grey scene symbolizes the complexity of knowledge and truth. Instead of the expected dichotomy of good and bad, the reality presented is mixed and ambiguous, suggesting that life and understanding are rarely black and white. This raises questions about our preconceived notions and the limitations of our understanding.
Themes
KnowledgeDisillusionmentRealityComplexityTruth
In practice
Example use cases
During a lecture on the complexities of morality, this quote could emphasize that issues are often not just right or wrong.
More from Stephen Crane
All quotes →I saw a man pursuing the horizon
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Two or three angels Came near to the earth. They saw a fat church. Little black streams of people Came and went in continually. And the angels were puzzled To know why the people went thus, And why they stayed so long within.
Stephen CraneRead
Sometimes, the most profound of awakenings come wrapped in the quietest of moments.
Stephen CraneRead
Tell her this And more,— That the king of the seas Weeps too, old, helpless man. The bustling fates Heap his hands with corpses Until he stands like a child With surplus of toys.
Stephen CraneRead
Over the river a golden ray of sun came through the hosts of leaden rain clouds.
Stephen CraneRead
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