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Cynicism Quotes

Browse 738 quotes about Cynicism.

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Cynicism Quotes

“Whereas modern cynicism brought despair about the ability of the human species to realize laudable ideals, postmodern cynicism doesn't — not because it's optimistic, but because it can't take ideals seriously in the first place. The prevailing attitude is Absurdism. A postmodern magazine may be irreverent, but not bitterly irreverent, for it's not purposefully irreverent; its aim is indiscriminate, because everyone is equally ridiculous. And anyway, there's no moral basis for passing judgment. Just sit back and enjoy the show.”

FirstsHumansMayShowsEnjoyRealizingAbilityAttitudeMoralModernDespairJudgmentIdealsBasesAimSpeciesRidiculousPassingPassingsOptimisticMagazinesCynicismPrevailingHuman SpeciesPostmodernIrreverentPassing Judgment
Author:Robert Wright
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“The cynics, they can only speak of the dark, of the obvious, and this is not hard. For all it’s supposed sophistication, it’s cynicism that’s simplistic. In a fallen world, how profound is to see the cracks? The sages and prophets, the disciples and revolutionaries, they are the ones up on the ramparts, up on the wall pointing to the dawn of the new Kingdom coming, pointing to the light that breaks through all things broken, pointing to redemption always rising and to the Blazing God who never sleeps.”

WorldHardLightSpeakDarkSleepBreakBrokenWallAll ThingsProfoundObviousKingdomsRedemptionDawnRevolutionaryFallenProphetRisingCracksCynicismDiscipleSagePointingBreak ThroughSophisticationBlazingNever SleepFallen World
Author:Ann Voskamp
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“My gaze flew to him once more,noting the cigarette he set down even as he exhaled a long plume of white."Why are you lying there smoking while I'm chained to a wall?"I demanded.The look he gave me was a mixture of relief and cynicism."Since it seems you don't remember anything about the past two days,let me assure you,luv-I earned that smoke.”

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Author:Jeaniene Frost
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“I will eliminate hatred, envy, jealousy, selfishness, and cynicism, by developing love for all humanity, because I know that a negative attitude toward others can never bring me success. I will cause others to believe in me, because I will believe in them, and in myself.”

KnowsBelieveHumanityCausesAttitudeNegativeHatredEnvyDevelopingSelfishnessCynicismBelieve In MeThink And Grow RichThink Rich Grow RichNegative Attitude
Book:Think and grow rich: Brazilian edition
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“Evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince al Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms. To say that force may sometimes be necessary is not a call to cynicism - it is a recognition of history; the imperfections of man and the limits of reason.”

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Author:Barack Obama
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“Lose/Win people bury a lot of feelings. And unexpressed feelings come forth later in uglier ways. Psychosomatic illnesses often are the reincarnation of cumulative resentment, deep disappointment and disillusionment repressed by the Lose/Win mentality. Disproportionate rage or anger, overreaction to minor provocation, and cynicism are other embodiments of suppressed emotion. People who are constantly repressing, not transcending feelings toward a higher meaning find that it affects the quality of their relationships with others.”

PeopleWayFeelingsWinningLosesEmotionQualityHigherIllnessDisappointmentRageMentalityResentmentCynicismMinorsReincarnationEmbodimentDisillusionmentRepressedProvocationTranscendingCumulativeRelationships With OthersOverreactionDeep Disappointment
Book:Daily Reflections for Highly Effective People: Living THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE Every Day
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“Every age is fed on illusions, lest men should renounce life early and the human race come to an end.”

MenShouldHumansEndsAgeRaceHistoryYouthIllusionHuman RaceFedsCynicismAltruismRenounce
Book:Greatest Works of Joseph Conrad: Heart of Darkness, Nostromo, The Duel, Lord Jim, Victory, The Shadow-Line, The Arrow of Gold, The Secret Agent, The Nigger of the Narcissus & Under Western Eyes: Classics of World Literature from One of the Greatest English Novelists (Including Author’s Memoirs, Letters & Critical Essays)
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“Let it never be said by future generations that indifference, cynicism or selfishness made us fail to live up to the ideals of humanism which the Nobel Peace Prize encapsulates. Let the strivings of us all, prove Martin Luther King Jr. to have been correct, when he said that humanity can no longer be tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war.”

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Author:Nelson Mandela
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“On Monday mornings I am dedicated to the proposition that all men are created jerks.”

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Author:H. Allen Smith
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“Postmodern irony and cynicism's become an end in itself, a measure of hip sophistication and literary savvy. Few artists dare to try to talk about ways of working toward redeeming what's wrong, because they'll look sentimental and naive to all the weary ironists. Irony's gone from liberating to enslaving. ... The postmodern founders' patricidal work was great, but patricide produces orphans, and no amount of revelry can make up for the fact that writers my age have been literary orphans throughout our formative years.”

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Author:David Foster Wallace
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“Despite not knowing if what he felt from moment to moment would pass or last forever, he entered fully into his shifting states of violent rage, self-pity, longing, heartbreak, cynicism, without losing the ability to think about what was happening to him. That took courage, I thought, living with the suffering in a mindful way, as an artifact of being, neither good nor bad.”

IfsThinkingWayInspirationalSelfStatesMomentsLastsSufferingFeltAbilityForeverKnowingLosingHappeningsLongingRageViolentPityDespiteCynicismNot KnowingShiftingSelf PityArtifacts
Author:Diane Ackerman
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“In the press grandstand where I watched Discovery rise against the cloudless sky, the media hit the abort button on cynicism. The Earth shook to the sounds of man, three miles away. The candle lit. . . only someone stripped of awe can leave a launch untouched.”

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Book:Between the Lines: A View Inside American Politics, People, and Culture
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“The state of interbeing is a vulnerable state. It is the vulnerability of the naive altruist, of the trusting lover, of the unguarded sharer. To enter it, one must leave behind the seeming shelter of a control-based life, protected by walls of cynicism, judgment, and blame.”

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Book:The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible
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“People confuse the word cynicism with the word skepticism. One is “you’re not gonna pay attention to anything, think everything’s screwed up, nothing’s ever gonna work out right”, that’s cynicism. But skepticism is, “you’re presented with evidence and you do your best to draw conclusions based on that”. So, as the saying goes, Bill Nye, do you believe in ghosts? No. However, I would love to see one. Bring it on. I’m open minded to the idea, but the more I look into it in a skeptical frame of thinking, the less likely it seems.”

PeopleThinkingBelieveLooksIdeasSeemsPayAttentionDrawsEvidenceBillsWork OutGhostConclusionPay AttentionCynicismSkepticismSkepticalOpen MindOpen MindedScrewed UpNye
Author:Bill Nye
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“The Nigerian storyteller Ben Okri says that ‘In a fractured age, when cynicism is god, here is a possible heresy: we live by stories, we also live in them. One way or another we are living the stories planted in us early or along the way, or we are also living the stories we planted — knowingly or unknowingly — in ourselves. We live stories that either give our lives meaning or negate it with meaninglessness. If we change the stories we live by, quite possibly we change our lives.’”

IfsWayGivingStoriesAgeOur LivesOne WayMeaning Of LifeLive ByCynicismStorytellerHeresyLife MeansMeaninglessness
Author:Ben Okri
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