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Quote by Paul de Man

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Paul de Man
Paul de Man

Paul de Man (December 6, 1919 - December 21, 1983) was a prominent philosopher, literary theorist, and critic whose theoretical work had a profound impact on 20th-century literary criticism, particularly in the field of deconstruction. Born in Vilnius, Lithuania, and raised in Nazi Germany, he later immigrated to the United States, where he taught at Columbia University. more

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“Our death is not an end if we can live on in our children and the younger generation. For they are us; our bodies are only wilted leaves on the tree of life.”

“I've met God across his long walnut desk with his diplomas hanging on the wall behind him, and God asks me, 'Why?' Why did I cause so much pain? Didn't I realize that each of us is a sacred, unique snowflake of special unique specialness? Can't I see how we're all manifestations of love? I look at God behind his desk, taking notes on a pad, but God's got this all wrong. We are not special. We are not crap or trash, either. We just are. We just are, and what happens just happens. And God says, 'No, that's not right.' Yeah. Well. Whatever. You can't teach God anything.”

“Marla tells me how in the wild you don't see old animals because as soon as they age, animals die. If they get sick or slow down, something stronger kills them. Animals aren't meant to get old. Marla lies down on her bed and undoes the tie on her bathrobe, and says our culture has made death something wrong. Old animals should be an unnatural exception. Freaks.”