I looked at the stars, and considered how awful it would be for a man to turn his face up to them as he froze to death, and see no help or pity in all the glittering multitude.
Interpretation
This quote reflects on the isolation of humanity in the face of a vast, indifferent universe.
In this quote, Charles Dickens poignantly explores the emotional weight of despair when one looks towards the stars, symbols of hope and beauty, but finds no solace or assistance in their brilliance. It suggests the profound loneliness and helplessness that can accompany life’s harshest moments, as the individual realizes that even amidst a stunning universe, they may still face suffering without guidance or support.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech about resilience in times of hardship.
I recollected one story there was in the village, how that on a certain night in the year (it might be that very night for anything I knew), all the dead people came out of the ground and sat at the heads of their own graves till morning.
A silent look of affection and regard when all other eyes are turned coldly away-the consciousness that we possess the sympathy and affection of one being when all others have deserted us-is a hold, a stay, a comfort, in the deepest affliction, which no wealth could purchase, or power bestow.
Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before--more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle.
There are not a few among the disciples of charity who require, in their vocation, scarcely less excitement than the votaries of pleasure in theirs.
You might, from your appearance, be the wife of Lucifer,” said Miss Pross, in her breathing. “Nevertheless, you shall not get the better of me. I am an Englishwoman.
Christmas is a poor excuse every 25th of December to pick a man's pockets.
Accustom yourself not to be disregarding of what someone else has to say: as far as possible enter into the mind of the speaker.
Listen to your life. Listen to what happens to you because it is through what happens to you that God speaks...It's in language that's not always easy to decipher, but it's there powerfully, memorably, unforgettably.
Normal consciousness is a state of stupor, in which the sensibility to the wholly real and responsiveness to the stimuli of the spirit are reduced. The mystics, knowing that man is involved in a hidden history of the cosmos, endeavor to awake from the drowsiness and apathy and to regain the state of wakefulness for their enchanted souls.
We do not always proclaim loudly the most important thing we have to say. Nor do we always privately share it with those closest to us, our intimate friends, those who have been most devotedly ready to receive our confession.
All things are in a state of flux.
Each of us is here for a brief sojourn; for what purpose_x000D_ _x000D_ he knows not, though he sometimes thinks he senses it._x000D_ _x000D_ But without deeper reflection one knows from daily life_x000D_ _x000D_ that one exists for other people.
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