“A writer is essentially a man who does not resign himself to loneliness.”
Help us to complete the source, original and additional information
Francois Mauriac 38
French author 1885–1970Related quotes
“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.”
The Soul of Man Under Socialism (1891)
Source: My Several Worlds (1954), p. 52 - 53
Context: Every event has had its cause, and nothing, not the least wind that blows, is accident or causeless. To understand what happens now one must find the cause, which may be very long ago in its beginning, but is surely there, and therefore a knowledge of history as detailed as possible is essential if we are to comprehend the present and be prepared for the future. Fate, Mr. Kung taught me, is not the blind superstition or helplessness that waits stupidly for what may happen. Fate is unalterable only in the sense that given a cause, a certain result must follow, but no cause is inevitable in itself, and man can shape his world if he does not resign himself to ignorance.
“No man is happy who does not think himself so.”
Sentences, The Moral Sayings of Publius Syrus, a Roman Slave
Source: Meditations
“No man is happy who does not think himself so.”
Maxim 584
Sentences, The Moral Sayings of Publius Syrus, a Roman Slave
“In utter loneliness a writer tries to explain the inexplicable.”
New York Times (2 June 1969)
“The man who does not value himself, cannot value anything or anyone.”
Source: The Virtue of Selfishness: A New Concept of Egoism
No. 104 (16 March 1751)
The Rambler (1750–1752)
The Paris Review interview (1958)
Context: The perfect ideal would be that a man who is essentially nonviolent would be able to defend himself against any form of violence. But this is very rare in life. But this raises one of the most important themes in Eternity, why Prewitt does not shoot back at the MPs who kill him as he tries to get back to his unit after his murder of Fatso Judson. You see, when Prewitt kills Fatso he is carrying the theory of vengeance by violence to its final logical end. But the thing is that Fatso doesn't even know why he is being killed; and when Prewitt sees that, he realizes what a fruitless thing he has done.