Has there ever been a society which has died of dissent? Several have died of conformity in our lifetime.
Jacob BronowskiRead
The richness of human life is that we have many lives, we live the events that do not happen (and some that cannot) as vividly as those that do, and if thereby we die a thousand deaths, that is the price we pay...
Interpretation
What this quote means
Human life encompasses a multitude of experiences, including imagined scenarios and missed opportunities, which shape our existence.
In this quote, Jacob Bronowski reflects on the complexity of human existence, suggesting that our lives are enriched by both lived experiences and the events we envision or regret. He implies that the emotional weight of our desires and fears can lead to profound experiences, even if they never materialize. The phrase 'die a thousand deaths' metaphorically illustrates the pain of these unrealized possibilities, indicating that the richness of life comes at a cost of sorrow and yearning.
Themes
Human LifeExperiencesImaginationPossibilitiesSorrowExistence
In practice
Example use cases
During a philosophy lecture, to illustrate the complexity of human experience.
More from Jacob Bronowski
All quotes →There is no absolute knowledge. And those who claim it, whether they are scientists or dogmatists, open the door to tragedy.
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To me the most interesting thing about man is that he is an animal who practices art and science and in every known society practices both together.
Jacob BronowskiRead
A man becomes creative, whether he is an artist or scientist, when he finds a new unity in the variety of nature. He does so by finding a likeness between things which were not thought alike before.
Jacob BronowskiRead
The values by which we are to survive are not rules for just and unjust conduct, but are those deeper illuminations in whose light justice and injustice, good and evil, means and ends are seen in fearful sharpness of outline.
Jacob BronowskiRead
The basis for poetry and scientific discovery is the ability to comprehend the unlike in the like and the like in the unlike.
Jacob BronowskiRead
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