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History, of course, makes a president big news and the…

“History, of course, makes a president big news and the assassination of one more so. However, I see men assassinated around me every day. I walk through rooms of the dead, streets of the dead, cities of the dead: men without eyes, men without voices; men with manufactured feelings and standard…” quote by Charles Bukowski
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““History, of course, makes a president big news and the assassination of one more so. However, I see men assassinated around me every day. I walk through rooms of the dead, streets of the dead, cities of the dead: men without eyes, men without voices; men with manufactured feelings and standard reactions; men with newspaper brains, television souls and high school ideals. Kennedy himself was 9/10ths the way around the clock or he wouldn't have accepted such an enervating and enfeebling job--meaning President of the United States of America. How can I be over concerned with the murder of one man when almost all men, plus females, are taken from cribs as babies and almost immediately thrown into the masher?””

Charles Bukowski

About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote reflects on the ubiquity of death and societal dehumanization, questioning why we focus on individual tragedies when mortality is universal.

In simple terms: We all die; society treats people like objects.

Key Takeaway

Recognize shared humanity, not just sensational events.

Themes

mortality dehumanization media societal critique

Mood

cynical reflective somber

Type

critical philosophical

When to use this quote

  • political analysis
  • personal reflection
  • media criticism
  • philosophical discourse

Key Concepts

existentialism nihilism social commentary

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does media shape our perception of individual loss?
  • In what ways do we dehumanize others daily?
A Different Perspective

The vivid metaphor may overgeneralize personal experience as universal truth.

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