--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are times, they occur with…" description: "\"There are times, they occur with increasing frequency nowadays, when I seem to know nothing, when everything I know seems to have fallen out of my mind..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png" --- # There are times, they occur with increasing frequency… ![“There are times, they occur with increasing frequency nowadays, when I seem to know nothing, when everything I know seems to have fallen out of my mind like a shower of rain, and I am gripped for a moment in paralysed dismay, waiting for it all to come back but with no certainty that it will.” quote by John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png) > “There are times, they occur with increasing frequency nowadays, when I seem to know nothing, when everything I know seems to have fallen out of my mind like a shower of rain, and I am gripped for a moment in paralysed dismay, waiting for it all to come back but with no certainty that it will.” [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Moments of mental blankness feel overwhelming, leaving uncertainty about regaining clarity. **In simple terms:** Sudden confusion creates anxiety. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty, seek grounding. Themes anxiety memory loss uncertainty Mood melancholic contemplative Type literary psychological When to use this quote - exam preparation - public speaking - creative blocks Key Concepts existentialism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What triggers your mental blanks? - How do you restore focus? A Different Perspective Recovery may require external support or time. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Dismay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dismay/) [Dismay Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dismay-waiting-6160994/) [Fallen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fallen/) [Gripped Moment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gripped-moment-6160992/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Moment Paralysed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment-paralysed-6160991/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Of my mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/of-my-mind/) [Paralysed Dismay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paralysed-dismay-6160993/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rain/) [Showers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/showers/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Times Occur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/times-occur-6160995/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) ## Related quotes > [“My body is a temple. 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It is the natural tendency in one when filled with dismay to turn to his wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finley-peter-dunne/what-is-instinct-it-is-the-natural-tendency-in-one-when-filled-with/) [Finley Peter Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finley-peter-dunne/) > [Carmen sat up when she heard a familiar trill from her computer. It was an instant message from Bee. Beezy3: Packing. Do you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-brashares/carmen-sat-up-when-she-heard-a-familiar-trill-from-her-computer-it/) [Ann Brashares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-brashares/) > [I will raise up prophets to make conflicting pronouncements that inevitably will be garbled in transcription, resulting in mutually exclusive definitions of orthodoxy from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-s-tepper/i-will-raise-up-prophets-to-make-conflicting-pronouncements-that/) [Sheri S. Tepper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-s-tepper/) > [But to go to school in a summer morn, O! 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But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-was-no-mistaking-her-sincerity-it-breathed-in-every-tone-of-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“To his dismay, it sounded as out of place in this somber laboratory as the book looked out of place, and he found himself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/to-his-dismay-it-sounded-as-out-of-place-in-this-somber-laboratory-as/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [What really frightens and dismays us is not external events themselves, but the way in which we think about them. It is not things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/what-really-frightens-and-dismays-us-is-not-external-events/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [God rest you merry, gentlemen, Let nothing you dismay, For Jesus Christ, our Saviour, Was born upon this day, To save us all from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/god-rest-you-merry-gentlemen-let-nothing-you-dismay-for-jesus-christ/) [Dinah Maria Murlock Craik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinah-maria-murlock-craik/) ## More by John Banville > [I've always been fascinated by physics and cosmology. It gets more and more scary the older you get.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-physics-and-cosmology-it-gets-more-and/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [“What did I brood on, sitting there in the classic pose with my elbows on my knees and my chin on my hands? 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But I like to make that elephant dance on a quarter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/the-novel-is-a-kind-of-elephant-but-i-like-to-make-that-elephant/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [“Whom now would I love, and who would love me?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/whom-now-would-i-love-and-who-would-love-me/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [Art is amoral, whether we accept this or not; it does not take sides. The finest fictions are cold at heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/art-is-amoral-whether-we-accept-this-or-not-it-does-not-take-sides/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [“At thee seaside all is narrow horizontals, the world reduced to a few long straight lines pressed between earth and sky.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/at-thee-seaside-all-is-narrow-horizontals-the-world-reduced-to-a-few/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [“It seems to me a work of art is the evidence offered by a fantastically observant witness”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/it-seems-to-me-a-work-of-art-is-the-evidence-offered-by-a/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [Everything we do is tinged with the knowledge that this may be the last time that we will do this, and that makes what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/everything-we-do-is-tinged-with-the-knowledge-that-this-may-be-the/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) > [I like ideas. I find them more exciting than human behavior for the most part.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/i-like-ideas-i-find-them-more-exciting-than-human-behavior-for-the/) [John Banville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) [Explore all 158 John Banville quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/) ## More Certainty quotes > [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/) [Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/) > [Sometimes we have the absolute certainty there's something inside us that's so hideous and monstrous that if we ever search it out we won't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-selby-jr/sometimes-we-have-the-absolute-certainty-there-s-something-inside-us/) [Hubert Selby, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-selby-jr/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [In the mental disturbance and effort of writing, what sustains you is the certainty that on every page there is something left unsaid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/in-the-mental-disturbance-and-effort-of-writing-what-sustains-you-is/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Of course I doubt. I do not practice a certainty. I practice a faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/of-course-i-doubt-i-do-not-practice-a-certainty-i-practice-a-faith/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [The world is a wonderfully weird place, consensual reality is significantly flawed, no institution can be trusted, certainty is a mirage, security a delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-world-is-a-wonderfully-weird-place-consensual-reality-is/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [As a businessman, I know that businesses need certainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-foster/as-a-businessman-i-know-that-businesses-need-certainty/) [Bill Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-foster/) > [It is suggested that in domestic violence at least the presence or absence of a firearm, or of any other type of weapon, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-greenwood/it-is-suggested-that-in-domestic-violence-at-least-the-presence-or/) [Colin Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-greenwood/) > [Every single person who is a member of our party deserves to have certainty. They deserve to know that my attention and focus is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annamie-paul/every-single-person-who-is-a-member-of-our-party-deserves-to-have/) [Annamie Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annamie-paul/) > [The significance and volume of repairs that are needed across the country demand that we give state and local governments the long-term certainty they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-graves/the-significance-and-volume-of-repairs-that-are-needed-across-the/) [Sam Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-graves/) > [“Death is the one great certainty in life. That’s what my dad used to say. Nothing else is certain. Not love. Not happiness. 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Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [Finding someone that trusted my vision helped me find certainty in who I was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/syd/finding-someone-that-trusted-my-vision-helped-me-find-certainty-in/) [Syd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/syd/) [Browse all 1,776 Certainty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are times, they occur with increasing frequency nowadays, when I seem to know nothing, when everything I know seems to have fallen out of my mind like a shower of rain, and I am gripped for a moment in paralysed dismay, waiting for it all to come back but with no certainty that it will.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Banville" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasing-frequency-nowadays-when-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Certainty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasing-frequency-nowadays-when-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ff0/john-banville-2532_certainty_there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasi_1615407.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are times, they occur with increasing frequency nowadays, when I seem to know nothing, when everything…” — John Banville", "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": "John Banville", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-banville/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There are times, they occur with...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasing-frequency-nowadays-when-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-banville/there-are-times-they-occur-with-increasing-frequency-nowadays-when-i/#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 } } ] } ```