"“Fool. There is no why. The very word is a semantic fallacy. Ask me how and I can lay out for you cause and effect, one thing leading to another, the alcohol acting on a grieving man’s mind, the door inadequately guarded, the people within isolated from the common lot of humanity by the dreadful secret of their ancestry.” He rattled his glass. Nathan refilled it. Faust drank. “But to ask why,” he continued, “implies that things happen for a purpose, and they do not. There is no purpose, no direction, no guidance to events. Nothing means anything. The world is a howling desert of meaningless, and reason is useless before it. There is only blind event.” He stared off into the bleak landscapes of the future while Nathan refilled his glass and refilled his glass and refilled his glass. He saw so clearly now, without delusion or hope. It was a crystal night of the soul."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Fantasy authorsScience fiction authors from the United StatesNovelists from the United StatesShort story writers from the United StatesCritics from the United States
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Chapter 19, “Ashes” (pp. 327-328)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Michael_Swanwick
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Michael Swanwick
115 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Michael Swanwick →
Related Quotes
"He was not actually drunk, but emotion made him feel as if he were. Sorrow, loss, anger—these were as good as a bottl…"
"The oracle-glass was maddeningly literal, capable of answering only the question one asked, rather than that which on…"
"“They’re just kids,” Will said scornfully. “Do not despise them because they are young. The young make excellent sold…"
"If I have to play your stupid games, at least I don’t have to pretend to enjoy them."
"Sam stood in the center of the church, listening for the presence of God. It was a hot place. The air was blue with f…"
"These hands were almost crippled digging coal so that rich men in Boston might grow even richer."
"“What you propose to do today is to bring civilization to a lawless corner of the world. I know that you claim more m…"
"I’m a politician. I agree with the majority of whoever I happen to be with at the moment."
"People will believe in just about any kind of superstitious crap nowadays."
"It was classic cult behavior: the charismatic leader whose word was law, the unreasoning obedience, the pervasive fear."