Cities Quote by Doris Lessing
“The storyteller is deep inside everyone of us. The story-maker is always with us. Let us suppose our world is attacked by war, by the horrors that we all of us easily imagine. Let us suppose floods wash through our cities, the seas rise . . . but the storyteller will be there, for it is our imaginations which shape us, keep us, create us - for good and for ill. It is our stories that will recreate us, when we are torn, hurt, even destroyed. It is the storyteller, the dream-maker, the myth-maker, that is our phoenix, that represents us at our best, and at our most creative.”
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Storyteller Within, Doris Lessing, 1995
Explores how storytelling shapes human experience, resilience, and identity amid crises like war and climate change.
In simple terms: Stories shape and heal us.
Key Takeaway
Use narratives to navigate adversity.
Themes
creativity
resilience
identity
Mood
reflective
hopeful
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- war zones
- climate disasters
- personal loss
- community rebuilding
- artistic expression
Key Concepts
storytelling
myth‑making
imagination
psychology
Questions to Reflect On
- How do narratives influence collective memory?
- What role does imagination play in recovery?
A Different Perspective
Stories can also reinforce harmful myths.
![“Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs [Less Developed Countries]?... I think the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to that... I’ve always…” quote by Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/ac4/lawrence-summers-16940_air_just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-wo_4703.jpg)
