The logic of pessimism moves through three refusals: a no-saying to the worst (refusal of the world-for-us, or Schopenhauer’s tears); a yes-saying to the worst (refusal of the world-in-itself, or Nietzsche’s laughter); and a no-saying to the for-us and the in-itself (a double refusal, or Cioran’s sleep).
Crying, laughing, sleeping — what other responses are adequate to a life that is so indifferent?
A day comes when, thanks to rigidity, nothing causes wonder any more, everything is known, and life is spent in beginning over again. These are the days of exile, of desiccated life, of dead souls. To come alive again, one needs a special grace, self-forgetfulness, or a homeland. Certain mornings, on turning a corner, a delightful dew falls on the heart and then evaporates. But its coolness remains, and this is what the heart requires always. I had to set out again.from Return to Tipasa by Albert Camus
I was young. And I felt that everybody had talent. And that for some reason they were being arbitrary and not employing that talent. I thought, 'Well, these people are the giants of an industry, they must have a good brain and a good heart and ability, how come they don't use it?' And Gena said, 'Look, a lot of people just don't have the same drives, the same desires, the same gun that sparks them. You're acting like these people all understand you; nobody understands you, I don't understand you. How the hell can anybody understand you? You're nuts!'from Cassavetes on Cassavetes
There, I was alone with myself. And disgusting as I was it was better than being with somebody else, anybody else, all of them out there doing their pitiful little tricks and handsprings. I pulled the covers up to my neck and waited.by Charles Bukowski
