Blackout Quote by James Gould Cozzens
““Mr. Lecky never got any farther than the third floor. Not conscious of impossible fatigue, feeling less than his distress of the morning, he was notwithstanding seized by a faintness. This sudden spinning dizzied him. A darkness as impalpable, more discrete, yet blacker than night's, spun out from dancing points to overlapping disks. They were so wide, so close to his eyes, that he could not strike them off. He had only a second given him to see and apprehend. This same second loosened his grip on consciousness. He seemed to let go, hardly struggling. His muscles let go everywhere, too. He had time to hear, like some remote accident, the bang of the shotgun, gone, the smash of glass in at least one flashlight lens. This was the thin segment of the actual second, and Mr. Lecky knew nothing of himself slumping to lie on the stairs with the things he had dropped.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: The Last Man, 1945
A man experiences a sudden, overwhelming loss of consciousness and sensory perception, leading to his collapse.
In simple terms: He blacks out and falls.
Key Takeaway
Recognize early signs of physical and mental overload.
Themes
health
stress
perception
Mood
anxious
somber
Type
narrative
descriptive
When to use this quote
- workplace fatigue
- medical emergencies
- high‑stress environments
Key Concepts
physiology
cognitive overload
sensory distortion
Questions to Reflect On
- What early symptoms could have prevented his collapse?
- How does sensory overload affect decision‑making?
