--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At the beginning of a pestilence and when…" description: "\"“At the beginning of a pestilence and when it ends, there's always a propensity for rhetoric. In the first case, habits have not yet been lost; in the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/albert-camus-47_birth_at-the-beginning-of-a-pestilence-and-whe_1727967.jpg" --- # At the beginning of a pestilence and when it ends, there's… ![“At the beginning of a pestilence and when it ends, there's always a propensity for rhetoric. In the first case, habits have not yet been lost; in the second, they're returning. It is in the thick of a calamity that one gets hardened to the truth - in other words, to silence.” quote by Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/albert-camus-47_birth_at-the-beginning-of-a-pestilence-and-whe_1727967.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/albert-camus-47_birth_at-the-beginning-of-a-pestilence-and-whe_1727967.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/albert-camus-47_birth_at-the-beginning-of-a-pestilence-and-whe_1727967.jpg) > ““At the beginning of a pestilence and when it ends, there's always a propensity for rhetoric. In the first case, habits have not yet been lost; in the second, they're returning. It is in the thick of a calamity that one gets hardened to the truth - in other words, to silence.”” [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. During crises, rhetoric emerges; initial habits fade, later they return, and hardship reveals truth, often silencing us. **In simple terms:** Crises bring rhetoric, habits shift, and truth hardens, leading to silence. Key Takeaway Seek truth beyond rhetoric, especially in turmoil. Themes crisis truth silence Mood reflective critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - political discourse - personal hardship - media analysis - historical study Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does silence protect or hinder truth? - When can rhetoric be constructive? A Different Perspective Rhetoric can also illuminate truth, not just silence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Habit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habit/) [Habits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habits/) [Pestilence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pestilence/) [Rhetoric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhetoric/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [In this respect, our townsfolk were like everybody else, wrapped up in themselves; in other words, they were humanists: they disbelieved in pestilences. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/in-this-respect-our-townsfolk-were-like-everybody-else-wrapped-up-in/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“All I can say is that on this earth there are pestilences and there are victims– and as far as possible one must refuse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/all-i-can-say-is-that-on-this-earth-there-are-pestilences-and-there/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Everybody knows that pestilences have a way of recurring in the world; yet somehow we find it hard to believe in ones that crash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/everybody-knows-that-pestilences-have-a-way-of-recurring-in-the-world/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The truth is that nothing is less sensational than pestilence, and by reason of their very duration great misfortunes are monotonous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-truth-is-that-nothing-is-less-sensational-than-pestilence-and-by/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [All I maintain is that on this earth there are pestilences and there are victims, and it's up to us, so far as possible,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/all-i-maintain-is-that-on-this-earth-there-are-pestilences-and-there/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“And it was in the midst of shouts rolling against the terrace wall in massive waves that waxed in volume and duration, while cataracts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/and-it-was-in-the-midst-of-shouts-rolling-against-the-terrace-wall-in/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Assuredly it would be a pity if laughter should ever become, like rhetoric and the arts, a habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-meynell/assuredly-it-would-be-a-pity-if-laughter-should-ever-become-like/) [Alice Meynell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-meynell/) > [“...my war on commas. 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He can face danger for the right. A poor, tender, painful body, he can run into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/thus-is-man-made-equal-to-every-event-he-can-face-danger-for-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I read the other day an account of a meeting between John Knox and John Calvin. Imagine a dialogue between a pestilence and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/i-read-the-other-day-an-account-of-a-meeting-between-john-knox-and/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) ## More by Albert Camus > [“The whole town rushed outside to celebrate this crowded minute when the time of suffering had ended and the time of forgetting had not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-whole-town-rushed-outside-to-celebrate-this-crowded-minute-when/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Generally, I like all islands. 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