It is necessary to work, if not from inclination, at least from despair. Everything considered, work is less boring than read more

It is necessary to work, if not from inclination, at least from despair. Everything considered, work is less boring than amusing oneself.

Alas for him who never sees
The stars shine through his cypress-trees
Who, hopeless, lays his dead read more

Alas for him who never sees
The stars shine through his cypress-trees
Who, hopeless, lays his dead away,
Nor looks to see the breaking day
Across the mournful marbles play!

Night was our friend, our leader was Despair.

Night was our friend, our leader was Despair.

Despair is a great incentive to honorable death.
[Lat., Desperatio magnum ad honeste moriendum incitamentum.]

Despair is a great incentive to honorable death.
[Lat., Desperatio magnum ad honeste moriendum incitamentum.]

. . . then black despair
The shadow of a starless night, was thrown
Over the world read more

. . . then black despair
The shadow of a starless night, was thrown
Over the world in which I moved alone.

All my life I believed I knew something. But then one strange day came when I realized that I knew read more

All my life I believed I knew something. But then one strange day came when I realized that I knew nothing, yes, I knew nothing. And so words became void of meaning. I have arrived too late at ultimate uncertainty.

It becomes no man to nurse despair, but, in the teeth of clenched antagonisms, to follow up the worthiest till read more

It becomes no man to nurse despair, but, in the teeth of clenched antagonisms, to follow up the worthiest till he die.

It is a miserable state of mind to have few things to desire, and many things to fear.

It is a miserable state of mind to have few things to desire, and many things to fear.

Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, read more

Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, but it is a sin the corrupt or evil man never practices. He always has hope. He never reaches the freezing-point of knowing absolute failure. Only the man of goodwill carries always in his heart this capacity for damnation.