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Quote by Thomas Mann

“Is not every human being a mistake, a product of misunderstanding? No sooner is he born than he is thrust into a prison. Prison! Prison! Chains and walls everywhere! Through the barred windows of his individuality, a person hopelessly gazes at the ramparts of external circumstances until death calls him home to freedom... Individuality! Ah, what we are, what we can do and have, seems to us paltry, gray, insufficient, and dull; but what we are not, what we cannot do, what we do not have, we regard with envious longing that turns into love—if only out of fear that it will turn into hatred.”

Quote by Thomas Mann

Book:Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family
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Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family

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Author

Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann

Thomas Mann, born on June 6, 1875, and died on August 12, 1955, was a German novelist and one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. Known for his profound psychological portrayals and rich imagination, his works extensively covered themes such as individual and society, history and reality. His masterpieces include 'Buddenbrooks' and 'The Magic Mountain'. more

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“Was not every human being a mistake, a blunder? Did we not, at the very moment of birth, stumble into agonizing captivity? A prison, a prison with bars and chains everywhere! And, staring out hopelessly from between the bars of his individuality, a man sees only the surrounding walls of external circumstance, until death comes and calls him home to freedom. Individuality! Oh, what a man is, can, and has seems to him so poor, gray, inadequate, and boring. But what a man is not, cannot, and does not have—he gazes at all that with longing envy—envy that turns to love, because he fears it will turn to hate.”

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Book:Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family
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“I often hear the argument that "being a loser is your choice and you should be respected for it," which is not true. Your parents raised you, and you're letting down all their investment in you; your ancestors struggled and died to produce you, and you have an innate loyalty to your society, which provides for you. Similarly, you have a loyalty to yourself and the person you could be, or to an abstract concept like "good." This is how the vast majority of the world throughout history has viewed morality, with modern Western atheist societies being the bizarre exceptions. If you choose to discredit all of that—your family, society, your potential as an individual, or morality—there's something very wrong with you.”

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