--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In summer, intolerable closeness; in…" description: "\"In summer, intolerable closeness; in winter, unendurable cold. All the floors were rotten. Filth on the floors an inch thick; one could slip and fall....." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/fyodor-dostoevsky-342_closeness_in-summer-intolerable-closeness-in-winte_1321308.png" --- # In summer, intolerable closeness; in winter, unendurable… ![“In summer, intolerable closeness; in winter, unendurable cold. All the floors were rotten. Filth on the floors an inch thick; one could slip and fall...” quote by Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/fyodor-dostoevsky-342_closeness_in-summer-intolerable-closeness-in-winte_1321308.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/fyodor-dostoevsky-342_closeness_in-summer-intolerable-closeness-in-winte_1321308.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/fyodor-dostoevsky-342_closeness_in-summer-intolerable-closeness-in-winte_1321308.png) > “In summer, intolerable closeness; in winter, unendurable cold. All the floors were rotten. Filth on the floors an inch thick; one could slip and fall...” [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator describes extreme discomfort in both summer and winter, emphasizing decay and filth in the environment. **In simple terms:** Extreme discomfort and decay in all seasons. Key Takeaway Recognize and address environmental decay. Themes discomfort decay environment seasonal contrast Mood grim reflective Type descriptive literary When to use this quote - urban housing - public health - maintenance - social reform Key Concepts existentialism social critique human suffering Questions to Reflect On - How does environment affect mental health? - What can be done to improve living conditions? A Different Perspective The description may be hyperbolic, not reflecting all lived experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Closeness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/closeness/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer/) [Winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter/) ## Related quotes > [These worst mornings with cold floors and hot windows and merciless light - the soul's certainty that the day will have to be not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/these-worst-mornings-with-cold-floors-and-hot-windows-and-merciless/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Avoiding cold floors above a garage is relatively simple when the house is built, insulated and heated properly. It's a little more complicated and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-baeumler/avoiding-cold-floors-above-a-garage-is-relatively-simple-when-the/) [Bryan Baeumler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-baeumler/) > [The thought that we are enduring the unendurable is one of the things that keeps us going.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-haskell/the-thought-that-we-are-enduring-the-unendurable-is-one-of-the-things/) [Molly Haskell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-haskell/) > [No single, individual moment is in and of itself unendurable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/no-single-individual-moment-is-in-and-of-itself-unendurable/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [What makes us leave what we love best? What is it inside us that keeps erasing itself When we need it most, That sends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-wright/what-makes-us-leave-what-we-love-best-what-is-it-inside-us-that-keeps/) [Charles Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-wright/) > [A faith in culture is as bad as a faith in religion; both expressions imply a turning away from those very things which culture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/a-faith-in-culture-is-as-bad-as-a-faith-in-religion-both-expressions/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [We have resolved to endure the unendurable and suffer what is insufferable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hirohito/we-have-resolved-to-endure-the-unendurable-and-suffer-what-is/) [Hirohito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hirohito/) > [International friendly games are not worth the lives of the silk worms who perish to make the pennants. They do not even have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-baker/international-friendly-games-are-not-worth-the-lives-of-the-silk/) [Danny Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-baker/) > [Others imply that they know what it is like to be depressed because they have gone through a divorce, lost a job, or broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/others-imply-that-they-know-what-it-is-like-to-be-depressed-because/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [“... That no single, individual moment is in and of itself unendurable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/that-no-single-individual-moment-is-in-and-of-itself-unendurable/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Manic depression distorts moods and thoughts, incites dreadful behaviors, destroys the basis of rational thought, and too often erodes the desire and will to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/manic-depression-distorts-moods-and-thoughts-incites-dreadful/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [The mysteries of a universe made of drops of fire and clods of mud do not concern us in the least. The fate of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-mysteries-of-a-universe-made-of-drops-of-fire-and-clods-of-mud-do/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [It was not a mere man he was holding, but a giant; or a block of granite. The pull was unendurable. The pain unendurable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ramsey-ullman/it-was-not-a-mere-man-he-was-holding-but-a-giant-or-a-block-of/) [James Ramsey Ullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ramsey-ullman/) > [On the one occasion where I did try writing a screenplay, I found the rewriting just unendurable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/on-the-one-occasion-where-i-did-try-writing-a-screenplay-i-found-the/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [The unendurable is the beginning of the curve of joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djuna-barnes/the-unendurable-is-the-beginning-of-the-curve-of-joy/) [Djuna Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djuna-barnes/) ## More by Fyodor Dostoevsky > [Believe to the end, even if all men went astray and you were left the only one faithful; bring your offering even then and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/believe-to-the-end-even-if-all-men-went-astray-and-you-were-left-the/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [... you are a man still young, so to say, in your first youth and so put intellect above everything ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/you-are-a-man-still-young-so-to-say-in-your-first-youth-and-so-put/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“There is only one salvation for you: take yourself up, and make yourself responsible for all the sins of men. For indeed it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/there-is-only-one-salvation-for-you-take-yourself-up-and-make/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“It is true I am a complete stranger to these people, but they are not strangers to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/it-is-true-i-am-a-complete-stranger-to-these-people-but-they-are-not/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Everything seems stupid when it fails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/everything-seems-stupid-when-it-fails/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Love to throw yourself on the earth and kiss it. Kiss the earth and love it with an unceasing, consuming love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/love-to-throw-yourself-on-the-earth-and-kiss-it-kiss-the-earth-and/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [They have this social justification for every nasty thing they do!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/they-have-this-social-justification-for-every-nasty-thing-they-do/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Be the sun and all will see you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/be-the-sun-and-all-will-see-you/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [If you are penitent, you love. And if you love you are of God. All things are atoned for, all things are saved by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/if-you-are-penitent-you-love-and-if-you-love-you-are-of-god-all/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“To kill for murder is a punishment incomparably worse than the crime itself. Murder by legal sentence is immeasurably more terrible than murder by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/to-kill-for-murder-is-a-punishment-incomparably-worse-than-the-crime/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“You magnify your failure to a crime, Vasya.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/you-magnify-your-failure-to-a-crime-vasya/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [The death of a child is the greatest reason to doubt the existence of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/the-death-of-a-child-is-the-greatest-reason-to-doubt-the-existence-of/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [In a way there's only a fine shade of difference between the healthy and the deranged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/in-a-way-there-s-only-a-fine-shade-of-difference-between-the-healthy/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“Now answer me, sincerely, honestly, who lives past forty? I'll tell you who does: fools and scoundrels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/now-answer-me-sincerely-honestly-who-lives-past-forty-i-ll-tell-you/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [“There are crimes that are truly uncomely. With crimes, whatever they may be, the more blood, the more horror there is, the more imposing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/there-are-crimes-that-are-truly-uncomely-with-crimes-whatever-they/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) [Explore all 642 Fyodor Dostoevsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) ## More Closeness quotes > [How could they say that they truly loved each other? They had simply grown up together, been children together, and the proximity of it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-guterson/how-could-they-say-that-they-truly-loved-each-other-they-had-simply/) [David Guterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-guterson/) > [You can't find any true closeness in Hollywood, because everybody does the fake closeness so well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-fisher/you-can-t-find-any-true-closeness-in-hollywood-because-everybody-does/) [Carrie Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-fisher/) > [“How long has it been since you and me? Hugs and kisses. Blankets and snuggles. Our sparks smoldering without a fireplace. Losing time is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/2019-fidelis-o-mkparu/how-long-has-it-been-since-you-and-me-hugs-and-kisses-blankets-and/) 2019 Fidelis O Mkparu > [“I'd watch his smooth chest rise and fall with each steady breath, I'd watch the pulsating of his stomach when he laughed, and I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-newell/i-d-watch-his-smooth-chest-rise-and-fall-with-each-steady-breath-i-d/) [Ashley Newell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-newell/) > [Jesus Christ does not teach us a spirituality “of closed eyes”, but one of “alertness”, one which entails an absolute duty to take notice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/jesus-christ-does-not-teach-us-a-spirituality-of-closed-eyes-but-one/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [This is really skin privilege, the ranking of color in terms of its closeness to white people or white-skinned people and its devaluation according…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/this-is-really-skin-privilege-the-ranking-of-color-in-terms-of-its/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [Daily fervent prayers seeking forgiveness and special help and direction are essential to our lives and the nourishment of our testimonies. When we become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-l-staheli/daily-fervent-prayers-seeking-forgiveness-and-special-help-and/) Donald L. Staheli > [Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/somewhere-we-know-that-without-silence-words-lose-their-meaning/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Women, understand that sex does not always equate to love, it just equates to a false sense of emotional closeness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enhance-dreams/women-understand-that-sex-does-not-always-equate-to-love-it-just/) Enhance Dreams > [The aesthetic event is something as evident, as immediate, as indefinable as love, the taste of fruit, as water. We feel poetry as we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-aesthetic-event-is-something-as-evident-as-immediate-as/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [“I do not know what to do with the emotions inside me. I do not know how to be this close to someone and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-renee-jones/i-do-not-know-what-to-do-with-the-emotions-inside-me-i-do-not-know/) [Lisa Renee Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-renee-jones/) > [The aesthetic event is something as evident, as immediate, as indefinable as love, the taste of fruit, of water. 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