--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The door could not be heard slamming…" description: "\"The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably left it open, as is the custom in homes where a great misfortune has occurred.\" — Franz Kafka" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg" --- # The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably… ![“The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably left it open, as is the custom in homes where a great misfortune has occurred.” quote by Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg) > “The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably left it open, as is the custom in homes where a great misfortune has occurred.” [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Misfortune can make ordinary sounds ominous; fear amplifies perception of mundane events. **In simple terms:** Bad events distort normal sounds. Key Takeaway Recognize fear’s exaggeration of reality. Themes fear misinterpretation misfortune Mood uneasy reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - everyday life - stressful situations - trauma recovery - crime scenes Key Concepts psychology perception anxiety Questions to Reflect On - How does fear change your hearing? - What sounds become threatening in crisis? A Different Perspective Some noises are truly dangerous. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door/) [Door Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door-heard-1241684/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Great Misfortune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-misfortune-259098/) [Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heard/) [Heard Slamming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heard-slamming-1670696/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Misfortune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misfortune/) [Misfortune Occurred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misfortune-occurred-1670695/) [Misfortunes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misfortunes/) ## Related quotes > [“If a misfortune has already occurred, it is best not to worry about it, so we do not add fuel to the problem. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama-xiv/if-a-misfortune-has-already-occurred-it-is-best-not-to-worry-about-it/) [Dalai Lama XIV](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama-xiv/) > [Great good nature without prudence is a great misfortune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/great-good-nature-without-prudence-is-a-great-misfortune/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [I have had a great misfortune; my dear old dog is dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-russell-mitford/i-have-had-a-great-misfortune-my-dear-old-dog-is-dead/) [Mary Russell Mitford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-russell-mitford/) > [Love feels like a great misfortune, a monstrous parasite, a permanent state of emergency that ruins all small pleasures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/love-feels-like-a-great-misfortune-a-monstrous-parasite-a-permanent/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [It is a great misfortune to be of use to nobody; scarcely less to be of use to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baltasar-gracian/it-is-a-great-misfortune-to-be-of-use-to-nobody-scarcely-less-to-be/) [Baltasar Gracian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baltasar-gracian/) > [It is my great misfortune that I have to measure your love by the money gifts you give for Daridranarayana.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/it-is-my-great-misfortune-that-i-have-to-measure-your-love-by-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [For an enemy so relentless in the war for our subjugation, we could not be expected to mourn; yet, in view of its political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-davis/for-an-enemy-so-relentless-in-the-war-for-our-subjugation-we-could/) [Jefferson Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-davis/) > [What passes out of one's mouth passes into a hundred ears. It is a great misfortune not to have sense enough to speak well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desiderius-erasmus/what-passes-out-of-one-s-mouth-passes-into-a-hundred-ears-it-is-a/) [Desiderius Erasmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desiderius-erasmus/) > [It is a great misfortune not to possess sufficient wit to speak well, nor sufficient judgment to keep silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/it-is-a-great-misfortune-not-to-possess-sufficient-wit-to-speak-well/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [It is a great misfortune neither to have enough wit to talk well nor enough judgment to be silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/it-is-a-great-misfortune-neither-to-have-enough-wit-to-talk-well-nor/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [Man's great misfortune is that he has no organ, no kind of eyelid or brake, to mask or block a thought, or all thought,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/man-s-great-misfortune-is-that-he-has-no-organ-no-kind-of-eyelid-or/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [This great misfortune, to be incapable of solitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/this-great-misfortune-to-be-incapable-of-solitude/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [Men cling to life even at the cost of enduring great misfortune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/men-cling-to-life-even-at-the-cost-of-enduring-great-misfortune/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [“And even though we may be involved with the most important affairs, achieve distinction or fall into some great misfortune- all the same, let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/and-even-though-we-may-be-involved-with-the-most-important-affairs/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [It ought to be considered a great misfortune, not only for individuals, but also for Houses and Congregations, to have everything in conformity with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-vincent/it-ought-to-be-considered-a-great-misfortune-not-only-for-individuals/) [St. Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-vincent/) ## More by Franz Kafka > [ “The tremendous world I have inside my head. But how \[to\] free myself and free it without being torn to pieces. And a thousand… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-tremendous-world-i-have-inside-my-head-but-how-to-free-myself-and/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [What I write is different from what I say, what I say is different from what I think, what I think is different from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/what-i-write-is-different-from-what-i-say-what-i-say-is-different/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“A fine setting for a fit of despair,” it occurred to him, “if I were only standing here by accident instead of design.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/a-fine-setting-for-a-fit-of-despair-it-occurred-to-him-if-i-were-only/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“Ali svi se slažu u tome da se ne podižu lakomislene optužbe i da se sud, kad jedanput nekog optuži i kad je uvjeren…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/ali-svi-se-sla-u-u-tome-da-se-ne-podi-u-lakomislene-optu-be-i-da-se/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [My job is unbearable to me because it conflicts with my only desire and my only calling, which is literature. Since I am nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/my-job-is-unbearable-to-me-because-it-conflicts-with-my-only-desire/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Faith, like a guillotine. As heavy, as light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/faith-like-a-guillotine-as-heavy-as-light/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [You need not even listen, just wait...the world will offer itself freely to you, unmasking itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/you-need-not-even-listen-just-wait-the-world-will-offer-itself-freely/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“I will cross hundreds of seas and oceans without sinking to reach you, see your eyes and sink completely into their depths.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/i-will-cross-hundreds-of-seas-and-oceans-without-sinking-to-reach-you/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [I have no memory for things I have learned, nor things I have read, nor things experienced or heard, neither for people nor events;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/i-have-no-memory-for-things-i-have-learned-nor-things-i-have-read-nor/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“This sounds crazy, but it is so. Nor is it perhaps really love when I say that for me you are the most beloved;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/this-sounds-crazy-but-it-is-so-nor-is-it-perhaps-really-love-when-i/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [The more horses you yoke the quicker everything will go - not the rending of the block from its foundation, which is impossible, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-more-horses-you-yoke-the-quicker-everything-will-go-not-the/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Martyrs do not underrate the body, they allow it to be elevated on the cross. In this they are at one with their antagonists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/martyrs-do-not-underrate-the-body-they-allow-it-to-be-elevated-on-the/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [The true way goes over a line that, rather than spanning heights, is hardly above the ground. It appears more decidedly to make one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-true-way-goes-over-a-line-that-rather-than-spanning-heights-is/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [Every new discovery is assumed at once into the sum total of knowledge, and with that ceases in a sense to be a discovery;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/every-new-discovery-is-assumed-at-once-into-the-sum-total-of/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“Sou de pedra. Sou a minha própria pedra tumular, sem nenhum interstício para a dúvida ou para a fé, para o amor ou para…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/sou-de-pedra-sou-a-minha-pr-pria-pedra-tumular-sem-nenhum-interst-cio/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) [Explore all 741 Franz Kafka quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) ## More Door quotes > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [When one door closes another doesn't just open, you can either open the same door or open a different one...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-one-door-closes-another-doesn-t-just-open-you-can-either-open/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/) [Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/) > [We can't love a place or a person if we always have one foot out the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/we-can-t-love-a-place-or-a-person-if-we-always-have-one-foot-out-the/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [Kindness unlocks doors that were thought to be closed forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unkown/kindness-unlocks-doors-that-were-thought-to-be-closed-forever/) [Unkown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unkown/) > [Dear parents,knocking while open the door to my bedroom kind of defeats the purpose of knocking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dear-parents-knocking-while-open-the-door-to-my-bedroom-kind-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [I won't be managing the Mets. I am closing the door on managing the Mets and probably everybody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-torre/i-won-t-be-managing-the-mets-i-am-closing-the-door-on-managing-the/) [Joe Torre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-torre/) > [If opportunity doesnt knock, build a door…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-opportunity-doesnt-knock-build-a-door/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Couples Therapy' is pretty big for me because it's opening the door to a new audience - a hip-hop following, which I feel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-carrera/couples-therapy-is-pretty-big-for-me-because-it-s-opening-the-door-to/) [Carmen Carrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-carrera/) > [“Happiness isn't something that you plan for. It comes knocking unexpectedly, just like opportunity. And it's up to you to answer the door and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/autumn-doughton/happiness-isn-t-something-that-you-plan-for-it-comes-knocking/) [Autumn Doughton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/autumn-doughton/) > [Nothing attracts me like a closed door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-bourke-white/nothing-attracts-me-like-a-closed-door/) [Margaret Bourke-White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-bourke-white/) > [They never opened the door which leads to the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/they-never-opened-the-door-which-leads-to-the-soul/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Hayley Haslett raised her hand and tapped on the door.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-rose/hayley-haslett-raised-her-hand-and-tapped-on-the-door/) [Carol Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-rose/) > [I think you've still got to try to be good, day-to-day. You see a granny, you hold the door open for her. You just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sami-zayn/i-think-you-ve-still-got-to-try-to-be-good-day-to-day-you-see-a/) [Sami Zayn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sami-zayn/) [Browse all 3,104 Door quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably left it open, as is the custom in homes where a great misfortune has occurred.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Franz Kafka" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-they-had-probably-left-it-open/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Door" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-they-had-probably-left-it-open/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cba/franz-kafka-214_doors_the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-the_1758451.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The door could not be heard slamming; they had probably left it open, as is the custom in homes where a…” — Franz Kafka", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Franz Kafka", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The door could not be heard...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-they-had-probably-left-it-open/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/the-door-could-not-be-heard-slamming-they-had-probably-left-it-open/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```