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Quote by Vladimir Bartol

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Vladimir Bartol
Vladimir Bartol

Vladimir Bartol (February 24, 1903 – September 12, 1967) was a Slovenian writer, playwright, and essayist, best known for his dystopian novel Alamut. Born in Ljubljana, he studied biology and philosophy at the University of Ljubljana and later in Paris. His works explore themes of power, faith, and individual freedom, influenced by Nietzsche and Freud. Alamut, published in 1938, is set in an 11th-century Persian fortress and tells the story of a leader who manipulates followers through drugs and fear, often seen as an allegory of totalitarianism. Bartol also wrote plays and short stories but gained little recognition during his lifetime. After WWII, he focused on scientific writing. Today, he is celebrated as a key figure in Slovenian literature, with Alamut translated into many languages. more

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“If a person realized that everything people call happiness, love and joy was just a miscalculation based on a false premise, he'd feel a horrible emptiness inside. The only thing that could rouse him from his paralysis would be to gamble with his own face and the face of others. The person capable of that would be permitted anything.”

“That's for the best. Otherwise they might realize they're in prison. It can't be helped. You women are used to harems and prisons. A person can spend his whole life between four walls. If he doesn't think or feel that he's a prisoner, then he's not a prisoner. But then there are people for whom the whole planet is a prison, who see the infinite expanse of the universe, the millions of stars and galaxies that remain forever inaccessible to them. And that awareness makes them the greatest prisoners of time and space.”