--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I agree with Proust in this, he says…" description: "\"“I agree with Proust in this, he says, that books create their own silences in ways that friends rarely do. And the silence that grows palpable when on..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c87/gabriel-josipovici-77486_books_i-agree-with-proust-in-this-he-says-that_1329803.jpg" --- # I agree with Proust in this, he says, that books create… ![“I agree with Proust in this, he says, that books create their own silences in ways that friends rarely do. And the silence that grows palpable when one has finished a canto of Dante, he says, is quite different from the silence that grows palpable when one has reached the end of Oedipus at…” quote by Gabriel Josipovici](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c87/gabriel-josipovici-77486_books_i-agree-with-proust-in-this-he-says-that_1329803.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c87/gabriel-josipovici-77486_books_i-agree-with-proust-in-this-he-says-that_1329803.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c87/gabriel-josipovici-77486_books_i-agree-with-proust-in-this-he-says-that_1329803.jpg) > ““I agree with Proust in this, he says, that books create their own silences in ways that friends rarely do. And the silence that grows palpable when one has finished a canto of Dante, he says, is quite different from the silence that grows palpable when one has reached the end of Oedipus at Colonus. The most terrible thing that has happened to people today, he says, is that they have grown frightened of silence. Instead of seeking it as a friend and as a source of renewal they now try in every way they can to shut it out... the fear of silence is the fear of loneliness, he says, and the fear of loneliness is the fear of silence. People fear silence, he says, because they have lost the ability to trust the world to bring about renewal. Silence for them means only the recognition that they have been abandoned... How can people find the strength to be happy if they are so terrified of silence?”” Gabriel Josipovici ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author argues that modern people fear silence because it exposes loneliness and a loss of trust in the world, suggesting a need to reclaim silence as a source of renewal. **In simple terms:** People fear silence, which reveals loneliness and distrust. Key Takeaway Reclaim silence for renewal. Themes silence loneliness trust renewal Mood contemplative philosophical thoughtful Type essay critical When to use this quote - personal meditation - creative writing - mental health Key Concepts existential anxiety psychology literary criticism Questions to Reflect On - How can you use silence constructively? - What does silence reveal about yourself? A Different Perspective Silence can also be unsettling, not just restorative. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Loneliness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loneliness/) [Silence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/silence/) ## Related quotes > [Men fear silence as they fear solitude, because both give them a glimpse of the terror of life's nothingness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-maurois/men-fear-silence-as-they-fear-solitude-because-both-give-them-a/) [Andre Maurois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-maurois/) > [The entertainment industry is terrified of silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-linney/the-entertainment-industry-is-terrified-of-silence/) [Laura Linney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-linney/) > [We have kept our children so busy with "useful" and "improving" activities that we are in danger of raising a generation of young people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eda-leshan/we-have-kept-our-children-so-busy-with-useful-and-improving/) [Eda LeShan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eda-leshan/) > [“The real revolution is not in overthrowing governments, but in dismantling the systems of silence and fear that hold women back”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hagir-elsheikh/the-real-revolution-is-not-in-overthrowing-governments-but-in/) [Hagir Elsheikh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hagir-elsheikh/) > [The way you silence fear is to give attention to faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/the-way-you-silence-fear-is-to-give-attention-to-faith/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I waited painfully. For night to fall again. Trying to silence the fear within me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dream-theater/i-waited-painfully-for-night-to-fall-again-trying-to-silence-the-fear/) [Dream Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dream-theater/) > [On my own, I couldn't silence my fear, but with God's presence I could push past it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-caine/on-my-own-i-couldn-t-silence-my-fear-but-with-god-s-presence-i-could/) [Christine Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-caine/) > [“Fear Hold you still when you need to move, and moves you when you need to be still. Fear makes you silent when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-vaughan/fear-hold-you-still-when-you-need-to-move-and-moves-you-when-you-need/) [Elizabeth Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-vaughan/) > [Don't fear conflict, fear the silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-parsley/don-t-fear-conflict-fear-the-silence/) [Ross Parsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-parsley/) > [“All it needed was me, and my fear. Because alone in the silence, in the unfathomable darkness, I knew that my own thoughts would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/all-it-needed-was-me-and-my-fear-because-alone-in-the-silence-in-the/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [Perhaps it is our fear, that in the silence between stories, in the moment of falling, the fear that we will never find the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/perhaps-it-is-our-fear-that-in-the-silence-between-stories-in-the/) [Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/) > [“We refuse to turn off our computers, turn off our phones, log off Facebook, and just sit in silence, because in those moments we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-bethke/we-refuse-to-turn-off-our-computers-turn-off-our-phones-log-off/) [Jefferson Bethke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-bethke/) > [“Get married, my friend, you don't know what it means to live alone, at my age. Nowadays feeling alone fills me with appalling anguish;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-maupassant/get-married-my-friend-you-don-t-know-what-it-means-to-live-alone-at/) [Guy de Maupassant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-maupassant/) > [“Don't fear His silence. Use it to examine your heart and motives. Listen expectantly for the silence to be broken by the glory of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-t-kendall-2/don-t-fear-his-silence-use-it-to-examine-your-heart-and-motives/) [R.T. Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-t-kendall-2/) > [My love, I fear the silence of your hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahmoud-darwish/my-love-i-fear-the-silence-of-your-hands/) [Mahmoud Darwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahmoud-darwish/) ## More by Gabriel Josipovici > [“I do not know where this mania for understanding oneself has come from, he said, but it clearly exerts a powerful hold on people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-josipovici/i-do-not-know-where-this-mania-for-understanding-oneself-has-come/) Gabriel Josipovici > [The worst way to read, he said, is with the thought that you do not have enough time. The only way to read is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-josipovici/the-worst-way-to-read-he-said-is-with-the-thought-that-you-do-not/) Gabriel Josipovici Explore all 3 Gabriel Josipovici quotes ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I agree with Proust in this, he says, that books create their own silences in ways that friends rarely do. And the silence that grows palpable when one has finished a canto of Dante, he says, is quite different from the silence that grows palpable when one has reached the end of Oedipus at Colonus. The most terrible thing that has happened to people today, he says, is that they have grown frightened of silence. Instead of seeking it as a friend and as a source of renewal they now try in every way they can to shut it out... the fear of silence is the fear of loneliness, he says, and the fear of loneliness is the fear of silence. People fear silence, he says, because they have lost the ability to trust the world to bring about renewal. Silence for them means only the recognition that they have been abandoned... 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