“When I contemplate the accumulation of guilt and remorse which, like a garbage-can, I carry through life, and which is fed not only by the lightest action but by the most harmless pleasure, I feel Man to be of all living things the most biologically incompetent and ill-organized. Why has he acquired a seventy years life-span only to poison it incurably by the mere being of himself? Why has he thrown Conscience, like a dead rat, to putrefy in the well?”
Quote by Cyril Connolly
Author
Cyril Connolly
Cyril Connolly was a prominent British literary critic and writer, known for his profound insights into modern literature and culture. His works include literary criticism, novels, and essays, with his most famous works being 'The Enemies' and 'The Private Papers of Henry Ryecroft'. Connolly's writing style was unique, characterized by satire and wit. more
You May Also Like
“Conscience is the internal perception of the rejection of a particular wish operating within us.”
Source: Totem and Taboo
“He that knows nothing doubts nothing.”
Source: The poetical works of George Herbert
“Just think of the tragedy of teaching children not to doubt.”
“Despair is the damp of hell, as joy is the serenity of heaven.”
“The specialist is one who never makes small mistakes while moving toward the grand fallacy.”
Source: Understanding media: the extensions of man
“Knowledge is the small part of ignorance that we arrange and classify.”
“To know is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of true knowledge.”
“Knowledge is the only elegance.”
Source: The Later Lectures of Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1843-1871