Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Fernando Pessoa

Quote by Fernando Pessoa

Work

The Book of Disquiet

Written by Fernando Pessoa, this work is a collection of fragments and thoughts that delve into the human condition, offering a unique perspective on the complexities of life and consciousness. more

Author

Fernando Pessoa
Fernando Pessoa

Portuguese poet known for his unique narrative style and rich inner world. Fernando Pessoa is considered one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, and his works are still widely studied and discussed today. more

You May Also Like

“The larks are singing!' Each year we make the announcement to one another. The words are sober enough, but what they convey, it is almost impossible to express. It means that our hills and moors are again fit places for new life, for song and work and laughter, all the things we cling to so passionately in the name of living... After the larks come the peewits. They usually arrive at dusk, and far into the darkening we hear their wild crying. Next morning we go out eagerly to watch them flashing and swooping over the bare, brown field. Each day after that we listen for the curlews and, when we see them gliding over the moor in the evening light and catch the sound of their call, which seems to come from some other very far-off place, we know that spring is really with us.”

“There was always an unspoken expectation that I would return one day and follow in my father's footsteps as an imperial guard. My mother grew ill, forcing my father into early retirement. I did my duty." "That seems unfair." He huffs out a breath. "It feels unfair. But my parents were older when they had me. You know, the last remnants of a postwar generation, brought up to value sacrifice, discipline, and duty." "Whoa. Gimu. Peak Japanese." Japanese language is subtly nuanced. There is a myriad of words to describe duty, and among them is the gimu----a lifelong obligation to family or country.”

“While you are busy eyeing the progress of others, you lose sight of your own opportunities. Handle your own business and get your personal affairs in order. Paying too much attention to someone else's blessings will ultimately cost you your own.”

“Strike experienced a moment of pure clarity: he would never make it out of here, would never rise above his current position as Rodney’s lieutenant, because all the intelligence and prudence and vision came to nothing if it wasn’t tempered and supported by a certain blindness, an oblivious animal will that Rodney had, that he, Strike, did not have. Rodney would survive all this not because of his guts or his brains, but because he understood that there was no real life out here on the street, no real lives other than his own, and that what really mattered was coming first in all things, in all ways and at all costs.”