The deep joy we take in the company of people with whom we have just recently fallen in love is undisguisable.
John CheeverRead
Wisdom we know is the knowledge of good and evil - not the strength to choose between the two.
Interpretation
Wisdom involves understanding moral choices but does not necessarily come with the ability to act wisely.
This quote by John Cheever emphasizes that wisdom transcends mere knowledge of good and evil; it implies understanding these concepts but not necessarily having the strength or will to choose the right action. Many individuals may grasp what is good and what is harmful, yet struggle to apply this knowledge in their decision-making, showcasing the complex nature of wisdom and human behavior.
In practice
In a discussion about ethical dilemmas during a philosophy class.
The deep joy we take in the company of people with whom we have just recently fallen in love is undisguisable.
For me a page of good prose is where one hears the rain. A page of good prose is when one hears the noise of battle.... A page of good prose seems to me the most serious dialogue that well-informed and intelligent men and women carry on today in their endeavor to make sure that the fires of this planet burn peaceably.
For me, a page of good prose is where one hears the rain and the noise of battle. It has the power to give grief or universality that lends it a youthful beauty.
The world that was not mine yesterday now lies spread out at my feet, a splendor. I seem, in the middle of the night, to have returned to the world of apples, the orchards of Heaven. Perhaps I should take my problems to a shrink, or perhaps I should enjoy the apples that I have, streaked with color like the evening sky.
What I am going to write is the last of what I have to say. I will say that literature is the only consciousness we possess and that its role as consciousness must inform us of our ability to comprehend the hideous danger of nuclear power.
Art is the triumph over chaos.
The people may be made to follow a path of action but they may not be made to understand it.
The next time you feel unworthy, inadequate or inferior, remember that these experiences have nothing to do with humbleness, any more than lowering yourself to connect with another individual has to do with humbleness. There are no lower or higher individuals in the perception of a humble person. There are only souls. There is only love.
You donβt question Providence. If you canβt have the reality, a dream is just as good.
When you are ignorant about something, to know that you are ignorant about it - that is knowledge.
I happen to be extremely left-brained; my instinct is to draw a chart rather than a picture. I'm trying to get my right-brain muscles into shape. I actually think this shift toward right-brain abilities has the potential to make us both better off and better in a deeper sense.
Remember that if the opportunities for great deeds should never come, the opportunities for good deeds are renewed day by day. The thing for us to long for is the goodness, not the glory.
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