“In politics, an absurdity is not an impediment.”
Napoleon : In His Own Words (1916)
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Napoleon I of France 259
French general, First Consul and later Emperor of the French 1769–1821Related quotes
“The Theatre of the Absurd attacks the comfortable certainties of religious or political orthodoxy.”
Introduction to Absurd Drama (1965)
Context: The Theatre of the Absurd attacks the comfortable certainties of religious or political orthodoxy. It aims to shock its audience out of complacency, to bring it face to face with the harsh facts of the human situation as these writers see it. But the challenge behind this message is anything but one of despair. It is a challenge to accept the human condition as it is, in all its mystery and absurdity, and to bear it with dignity, nobly, responsibly; precisely because there are no easy solutions to the mysteries of existence, because ultimately man is alone in a meaningless world. The shedding of easy solutions, of comforting illusions, may be painful, but it leaves behind it a sense of freedom and relief. And that is why, in the last resort, the Theatre of the Absurd does not provoke tears of despair but the laughter of liberation.
“Attachment to views is the greatest impediment to the spiritual path.”
Source: Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha
“An unsanctified temper is a fruitful source of error, and a mighty impediment to truth.”
Source: Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), P. 13.
“The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.”
V.20
Meditations (c. 121–180 AD), Book V
Context: In a sense, people are our proper occupation. Our job is to do them good and put up with them. But when they obstruct our proper tasks, they become irrelevant to us--like sun, wind, and animals. Our actions may be impeded by them, but there can be no impeding our intentions or our dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting. The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way. (Hays translation)
“When they're standing right in front of you, kings are a kind of speech impediment.”
The Carpet People (1971; 1992)
"Happy Thoughts on a Sunny Day in New York City", p. 9
Dinosaur in a Haystack (1995)
"Meryphillia"
The Throne of Bones (1997)
Context: For all their laughter, ghouls are a dull lot. Hunger is the fire in which they burn, and it burns hotter than the hunger for power over men or for knowledge of the gods in a crazed mortal. It vaporizes delicacy and leaves behind only a slag of anger and lust. They see their fellows as impediments to feeding, to be mauled and shrieked at when the mourners go home. They are seldom alone, not through love of one another's company, but because a lone ghoul is suspected of stealing food. Their copulation is so hasty that distinctions of sex and identity are often ignored.