--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In literary history, generation follows…" description: "\"In literary history, generation follows generation in a rage.\" — Annie Dillard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/983/annie-dillard-509_generations_in-literary-history-generation-follows-g_1449294.jpg" --- # In literary history, generation follows generation in a… ![“In literary history, generation follows generation in a rage.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/983/annie-dillard-509_generations_in-literary-history-generation-follows-g_1449294.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/983/annie-dillard-509_generations_in-literary-history-generation-follows-g_1449294.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/983/annie-dillard-509_generations_in-literary-history-generation-follows-g_1449294.jpg) > “In literary history, generation follows generation in a rage.” [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Each generation inherits the intense passions of its predecessors, creating a continuous chain of fervent expression. **In simple terms:** Passions pass from one generation to the next. Key Takeaway Recognize the legacy of fervor. Themes culture history passion Mood reflective intense Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - family storytelling - artistic movements - social media trends Key Concepts generational dynamics social contagion Questions to Reflect On - What passions have you inherited? - How can you channel inherited rage constructively? A Different Perspective Passion can become blind conformity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Follows Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/follows-generation-5207276/) [Generation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation/) [Generation Follows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation-follows-5207275/) [Generation Rage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generation-rage-5207274/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Rage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rage/) ## Related quotes > [We are an intelligent species caught in an historical process. No generation which proceeded us knew what was going on, and there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-an-intelligent-species-caught-in-an-historical-process-no/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Skin was earth; it was soil. I could see, even on my own skin, the joined trapezoids of dust specks God had wetted and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/skin-was-earth-it-was-soil-i-could-see-even-on-my-own-skin-the-joined/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“We are here to witness the creation and abet it. We are here to notice each thing so each thing gets noticed. Together we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-are-here-to-witness-the-creation-and-abet-it-we-are-here-to-notice/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We, the people, still believe that our obligations as Americans are not just to ourselves, but to all posterity. We will respond to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-the-people-still-believe-that-our-obligations-as-americans-are-not/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [O, Youth: Do you know that yours is not the first generation to yearn for a life full of beauty and freedom?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/o-youth-do-you-know-that-yours-is-not-the-first-generation-to-yearn/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I became the voice of a generation in a very surprising way, because many Iranians recognize themselves in it. But that is not what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-became-the-voice-of-a-generation-in-a-very-surprising-way-because/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [There's a whole generation coming up behind us that was engaged, inspired, worked for change during the course of my presidency, saw what was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/there-s-a-whole-generation-coming-up-behind-us-that-was-engaged/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [The next generation will remake the world in a way that allows us to live in a more sustainable way, both personally and globally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/the-next-generation-will-remake-the-world-in-a-way-that-allows-us-to/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [My generation in the UK, they're very apathetic, a lot of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thea-gilmore/my-generation-in-the-uk-they-re-very-apathetic-a-lot-of-them/) [Thea Gilmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thea-gilmore/) > [That which is truly human no generation learns from the one before it. No generation learns from another how to love. No generation has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/that-which-is-truly-human-no-generation-learns-from-the-one-before-it/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [What really distinguishes this generation in all countries from earlier generations ... is its determination to act, its joy in action, the assurance of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/what-really-distinguishes-this-generation-in-all-countries-from/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [Every generation tries to put its doctrine on a high shelf where the children can not reach it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-rauschenbusch/every-generation-tries-to-put-its-doctrine-on-a-high-shelf-where-the/) [Walter Rauschenbusch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-rauschenbusch/) > [We are the WTF generation: Wikipedia, Twitter and Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-the-wtf-generation-wikipedia-twitter-and-facebook/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Progress is the injustice each generation commits with regard to its predecessors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/progress-is-the-injustice-each-generation-commits-with-regard-to-its/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [If every nation gets the government it deserves, every generation writes the history which corresponds with its view of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-janeway/if-every-nation-gets-the-government-it-deserves-every-generation/) [Elizabeth Janeway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-janeway/) ## More by Annie Dillard > [Like everyone in his right mind, I feared Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/like-everyone-in-his-right-mind-i-feared-santa-claus/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The creatures I seek do not want to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-creatures-i-seek-do-not-want-to-be-seen/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [Nothing moves a woman so deeply as the boyhood of the man she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/nothing-moves-a-woman-so-deeply-as-the-boyhood-of-the-man-she-loves/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“...The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mockingbird-took-a-single-step-into-the-air-and-dropped-his-wings/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“Father had stretched out his long legs and was tilting back in his chair. Mother sat with her knees crossed, in blue slacks, smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/father-had-stretched-out-his-long-legs-and-was-tilting-back-in-his/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-frayed-and-nibbled-survivor-in-a-fallen-world-and-i-am-getting/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-is-madness-to-wear-ladies-straw-hats-and-velvet-hats-to-church-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The sense impressions of one-celled animals are not edited for the brain. This is philosophically interesting in a rather mournful way, since it means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-sense-impressions-of-one-celled-animals-are-not-edited-for-the/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“What can we make of the inexpressible joy of children? It is a kind of gratitude, I think—the gratitude of the ten-year-old who wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-can-we-make-of-the-inexpressible-joy-of-children-it-is-a-kind-of/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“If we were to judge nature by its common sense or likelihood, we wouldn't believe the world existed. In nature, improbabilities are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/if-we-were-to-judge-nature-by-its-common-sense-or-likelihood-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [For writing a first draft requires from the writer a peculiar internal state which ordinary life does not induce. ... how to set yourself spinning?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/for-writing-a-first-draft-requires-from-the-writer-a-peculiar/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-fugitive-and-a-vagabond-a-sojourner-seeking-signs/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) [Explore all 509 Annie Dillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## More Generation quotes > [If every nation gets the government it deserves, every generation writes the history which corresponds with its view of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-janeway/if-every-nation-gets-the-government-it-deserves-every-generation/) [Elizabeth Janeway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-janeway/) > [“More than anything, Boomer influence is a story of sheer numbers. As of the early 1980s, when the Boomer revolution really kicked off, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cannon-gibney/more-than-anything-boomer-influence-is-a-story-of-sheer-numbers-as-of/) [Bruce Cannon Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cannon-gibney/) > [We live in such a special time when literally anything we can think of is possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-willey/we-live-in-such-a-special-time-when-literally-anything-we-can-think/) [Daniel Willey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-willey/) > [We are living in a WTF generation (W)ikipedia (T)witter (F)acebook!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-living-in-a-wtf-generation-w-ikipedia-t-witter-f-acebook/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Progress is the injustice each generation commits with regard to its predecessors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/progress-is-the-injustice-each-generation-commits-with-regard-to-its/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [We are the WTF generation: Wikipedia, Twitter and Facebook.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-the-wtf-generation-wikipedia-twitter-and-facebook/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not of this generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-manson/i-m-not-of-this-generation/) [Charles Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-manson/) > [Phil is of a generation that probably would have been happier never getting married. He just doesn't want to get married again; it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanie-buss/phil-is-of-a-generation-that-probably-would-have-been-happier-never/) [Jeanie Buss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanie-buss/) > [In the long period of time when I did talk shows and game shows, a whole new generation of people came along who thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-bean/in-the-long-period-of-time-when-i-did-talk-shows-and-game-shows-a/) [Orson Bean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-bean/) > [If we turn our backs on the remaining industries and not reinvest in these places and just say 'You're on your own,' we will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fetterman/if-we-turn-our-backs-on-the-remaining-industries-and-not-reinvest-in/) [John Fetterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fetterman/) > [I liked the generation of Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs, who I admired. I was a little bit jealous of Karel Poborsky who played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pavel-nedved/i-liked-the-generation-of-paul-scholes-and-ryan-giggs-who-i-admired-i/) [Pavel Nedved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pavel-nedved/) > [I look forward to the day that a lot of the folks that you all talk about and cover on this network will begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-look-forward-to-the-day-that-a-lot-of-the-folks-that-you-all-talk/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Plainly, when perfusate from an organ or blood from an animal is used for superfusion, substances can reach the assay tissues within a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-vane/plainly-when-perfusate-from-an-organ-or-blood-from-an-animal-is-used/) [John Vane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-vane/) > [There's a whole generation of women who never really heard the word investment before, when it came to fashion. 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