This truth within thy mind rehearse, That in a boundless universe Is boundless better, boundless worse.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the vastness of the universe, suggesting that with infinite possibilities comes both greater potential for good and bad.
In this quote, Tennyson highlights the paradox of the boundless universe and its implications for human experience. He suggests that as the universe expands without limits, so too do the opportunities for excellence and failure, emphasizing the dual nature of existence where what is considered 'better' or 'worse' can become limitless. This invites deep reflection on how our understanding of morality and potential is shaped in an infinitely complex world.
In practice
In a debate about the nature of good and evil, this quote can illustrate the complexities involved.
Twilight and evening bell, And after that the dark! And may there be no sadness of farewell, When I embark; For though from out our bourne of Time and Place The flood may bear me far, I hope to see my Pilot face to face When I have crossed the bar.
How many a father have I seen, A sober man, among his boys, Whose youth was full of foolish noise.
O Love! what hours were thine and mine, In lands of palm and southern pine; In lands of palm, of orange-blossom, Of olive, aloe, and maize and vine!
Earth is dry to the centre,_x000D_ But spring, a new comer,_x000D_ A spring rich and strange,_x000D_ Shall make the winds blow_x000D_ Round and round,_x000D_ Thro' and thro',_x000D_ Here and there,_x000D_ Till the air_x000D_ And the ground_x000D_ Shall be fill'd with life anew.
O love, O fire! once he drew With one long kiss my whole soul through My lips, as sunlight drinketh dew.
But thy strong Hours indignant work’d their wills, And beat me down and marr’d and wasted me, And tho’ they could not end me, left me maim’d To dwell in presence of immortal youth, Immortal age beside immortal youth, And all I was, in ashes. - Tithonus
Right, as the world goes, is only in question between equals in power, while the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.
We forget all too soon the things we thought we could never forget.
Sit in reverie and watch the changing color of the waves that break upon the idle seashore of the mind.
There's an opposite to déjà vu. They call it jamais vu. It's when you meet the same people or visit places, again and again, but each time is the first. Everybody is always a stranger. Nothing is ever familiar.
We are all regionalists in our origins, however 'universal' our themes and characters, and without our cherished hometowns and childhood landscapes to nourish us, we would be like plants set in shallow soil. Our souls must take root - almost literally.
Freud was way off base in considering sex the fundamental motivation. The ruling passion in men is minding each other's business.
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