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Words, in their distant past, have the past of my reveries.
Gaston Bachelard
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote emphasizes the deep connection between words and the thoughts and dreams they evoke from our past.

Gaston Bachelard reflects on the profound significance of words, suggesting that they are not merely tools for communication but vessels for our memories and dreams. Words carry the essence of our past experiences and emotions, creating a rich tapestry of reverie that influences our perceptions and understanding of the world.

Themes

WordsMemoriesReveriesLanguagePhilosophy

In practice

Example use cases

Using this quote in a literary discussion about the power of language.

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In order to dream so far, is it enough to read? Isn't it necessary to write? Write as in our schoolboy past, in those days when, as Bonnoure says, the letters wrote themselves one by one, either in their gibbosity or else in their pretentious elegance? In those days, spelling was a drama, our drama of culture at work in the interior of a word.
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How is it possible not to feel that there is communication between our solitude as a dreamer and the solitudes of childhood? And it is no accident that, in a tranquil reverie, we often follow the slope which returns us to our childhood solitudes.
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