"As geological time goes, it is but a moment since the human race began and only the twinkling of an eye since the arts of civilization were first invented. In spite of some alarmists, it is hardly likely that our species will completely exterminate itself. And so long as man continues to exist, we may be pretty sure that, whatever he may suffer for a time, and whatever brightness may be eclipsed, he will emerge sooner or later, perhaps strengthened and reinvigorated by a period of mental sleep. The universe is vast and men are but tiny specks on an insignificant planet. But the more we realize our minuteness and our impotence in the face of cosmic forces, the more astonishing becomes what human beings have achieved."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
"If We are to Survive this Dark Time", The New York Times Magazine (3 September 1950)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bertrand_Russell
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Bertrand Russell
1872
britischer Mathematiker, Philosoph und Schriftsteller
562 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Bertrand Russell →
Related Quotes
"Love and knowledge, so far as they were possible, led upward toward the heavens. But always pity brought me back to e…"
"The next stage in the development of a desirable form of sensitiveness is sympathy. There is a purely physical sympat…"
"He was not an ascetic, but he despised luxury and the pursuit of artificial pleasures of the senses."
"The supposed wisdom of proverbs is mainly imaginary. As a rule, proverbs go in pairs which say opposite things. The o…"
"The beliefs appropriate to the impulse of aggression may be seen in Bernhardi, or in the early Mohammedan conquerors,…"
"A book is a friend."
"I do not think it possible to get anywhere if we start from scepticism. We must start from a broad acceptance of what…"
"As we all know, Mr. Russell produces a different system of philosophy every few years..."
"Wherever one finds oneself inclined to bitterness, it is a sign of emotional failure: a larger heart, and a greater s…"
"Some modern philosophers have gone so far as to say that words should never be confronted with facts but should live …"