Sometimes I am a collector of data, and only a collector…
“Sometimes I am a collector of data, and only a collector, and am likely to be gross and miserly, piling up notes, pleased with merely numerically adding to my stores. Other times I have joys, when unexpectedly coming upon an outrageous story that may not be altogether a lie, or upon a macabre little thing that may make some reviewer of my more or less good works mad. But always there is present a feeling of unexplained relations of events that I note, and it is this far-away, haunting, or often taunting, awareness, or suspicion, that keeps me piling on.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
The author describes a tension between meticulous data gathering and the thrill of encountering strange, possibly false narratives that provoke curiosity and unease, driving a compulsion to collect and connect disparate observations.
In simple terms: A tension between systematic collection and the lure of odd stories.
Key Takeaway
Compulsive pattern‑making from oddities.
Themes
curiosity
obsession
pattern‑recognition
uncertainty
aesthetic fascination
Mood
intrigued
haunted
suspicious
Type
reflective
philosophical
When to use this quote
- research note‑taking
- creative writing brainstorming
- investigative journalism
- personal journaling
- academic literature review
Key Concepts
data collection
anecdotal intrigue
psychological tension
narrative suspicion
Practical Applications
- Identify hidden connections in research data
- Generate compelling anecdotes for storytelling
Questions to Reflect On
- What drives the urge to seek patterns in unrelated events?
- How does the presence of the absurd influence analytical rigor?