--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What is most original in a man's nature…" description: "\"What is most original in a man's nature is often that which is most desperate. Thus new systems are forced on the world by men who simply cannot bear t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/leonard-cohen-448_atmosphere_what-is-most-original-in-a-man-s-nature_526396.jpg" --- # What is most original in a man's nature is often that… ![“What is most original in a man's nature is often that which is most desperate. Thus new systems are forced on the world by men who simply cannot bear the pain of living with what is. Creators care nothing for their systems except that they be unique. If Hitler had been born in Nazi Germany he…” quote by Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/leonard-cohen-448_atmosphere_what-is-most-original-in-a-man-s-nature_526396.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/leonard-cohen-448_atmosphere_what-is-most-original-in-a-man-s-nature_526396.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2bf/leonard-cohen-448_atmosphere_what-is-most-original-in-a-man-s-nature_526396.jpg) > “What is most original in a man's nature is often that which is most desperate. Thus new systems are forced on the world by men who simply cannot bear the pain of living with what is. Creators care nothing for their systems except that they be unique. If Hitler had been born in Nazi Germany he wouldn't have been content to enjoy the atmosphere.” [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that deep desperation drives individuals to create radically new systems, often out of inability to accept existing reality, and that creators value uniqueness over practicality. **In simple terms:** Desperation fuels radical innovation and desire for uniqueness. Key Takeaway Recognize when desperation fuels creativity. Themes creativity desperation innovation uniqueness psychology Mood intense reflective Type philosophical critical When to use this quote - artistic creation - technological breakthroughs - political movements - personal transformation Key Concepts existentialism creative drive social pressure Questions to Reflect On - What drives your desire for uniqueness? - How can you channel desperation constructively? A Different Perspective Desperation may lead to harmful or unsustainable systems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atmosphere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atmosphere/) [Bears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bears/) [Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Creator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creator/) [Creators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creators/) [Desperate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperate/) [Enjoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enjoy/) [Germany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/germany/) [Hitler Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hitler-born-2629426/) [Man Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-nature-332199/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nazi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nazi/) [Nazi germany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nazi-germany/) [Original Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/original-man-565603/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Unique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unique/) [Unique Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unique-hitler-4432079/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“Adolf Hitler was born in Braunau am Inn, a town in what is now Austria, on April 20, 1889.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hourly-history/adolf-hitler-was-born-in-braunau-am-inn-a-town-in-what-is-now-austria/) [Hourly History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hourly-history/) > [“As Rudy slumped into the corner and flicked mud from his sleeve at the window, Franz fired him the Hitler Youth's favourite question: 'When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/as-rudy-slumped-into-the-corner-and-flicked-mud-from-his-sleeve-at/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [David Lloyd George had been to Germany, and been so dazzled by the Führer that he compared him to George Washington. Hitler was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boris-johnson/david-lloyd-george-had-been-to-germany-and-been-so-dazzled-by-the-f/) [Boris Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boris-johnson/) > [“The original in man is that which articulates him from the very outset upon something other than himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-olson/the-original-in-man-is-that-which-articulates-him-from-the-very/) [Charles Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-olson/) > [I am Mafuzzy Man, original man, 100 percent pure, man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serge-ibaka/i-am-mafuzzy-man-original-man-100-percent-pure-man/) [Serge Ibaka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serge-ibaka/) > [“No man who cares about originality will ever be original. It's the man who's only thinking about doing a good job or telling the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/no-man-who-cares-about-originality-will-ever-be-original-it-s-the-man/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [“inasmuch as man is saved, it is fitting that he who was created the original man should be saved”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-church-fathers/inasmuch-as-man-is-saved-it-is-fitting-that-he-who-was-created-the/) [The Church Fathers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-church-fathers/) > [I'll develop my own image. I'm an original man. A one and only. I just need some help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ll-develop-my-own-image-i-m-an-original-man-a-one-and-only-i-just/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Creators care nothing for their systems except that they be unique.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/creators-care-nothing-for-their-systems-except-that-they-be-unique/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [More inhumanity (to man) has been done by man himself than any other of nature's causes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-von-pufendorf/more-inhumanity-to-man-has-been-done-by-man-himself-than-any-other-of/) [Samuel von Pufendorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-von-pufendorf/) > [“The state of civil society, which necessarily generates this aristocracy, is a state of nature; and much more truly so than a savage and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/the-state-of-civil-society-which-necessarily-generates-this/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Man is nature as much as the trees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-kiley/man-is-nature-as-much-as-the-trees/) [Dan Kiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-kiley/) > [“According to Scripture, the trouble with man by nature is not that he is incomplete but that he is dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martyn-lloyd-jones/according-to-scripture-the-trouble-with-man-by-nature-is-not-that-he/) [Martyn Lloyd-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martyn-lloyd-jones/) > [“such is their image of man’s nature: the battleground of a struggle between a corpse and a ghost,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/such-is-their-image-of-man-s-nature-the-battleground-of-a-struggle/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Those who made and endorsed our Constitution knew man's nature, and it is to their ideas, rather than to the temptations of utopia, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bork/those-who-made-and-endorsed-our-constitution-knew-man-s-nature-and-it/) [Robert Bork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bork/) ## More by Leonard Cohen > [The blizzard of the world has crossed the threshold and it's overturned the order of the soul...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/the-blizzard-of-the-world-has-crossed-the-threshold-and-it-s/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“Don't matter if you're rich and strong Don't matter if you're weak Don't matter if you write a song The nightingales repeat Don't matter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/don-t-matter-if-you-re-rich-and-strong-don-t-matter-if-you-re-weak/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“You don't know me from the wind you never will, you never did I'm the little jew who wrote the Bible. I've seen the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/you-don-t-know-me-from-the-wind-you-never-will-you-never-did-i-m-the/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“This is it I’m not coming after you I’m going to lie down for half an hour This is it I’m not going down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/this-is-it-i-m-not-coming-after-you-i-m-going-to-lie-down-for-half-an/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [My sense of proprietorship has been so weak that actually I didn't pay attention and I lost the copyrights on a lot of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/my-sense-of-proprietorship-has-been-so-weak-that-actually-i-didn-t/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [This world is full of conflicts and full of things that cannot be reconciled. But there are moments when we can... reconcile and embrace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/this-world-is-full-of-conflicts-and-full-of-things-that-cannot-be/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [ I would say the hummingbird really deserves the royalties on \[some of my songs\]. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-would-say-the-hummingbird-really-deserves-the-royalties-on-some-of/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [One is given to self-dramatization from time to time. I intend to live forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/one-is-given-to-self-dramatization-from-time-to-time-i-intend-to-live/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [The basic function of popular music is to create an environment for courting, lovemaking, and doing the dishes. It's useful because it addresses the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/the-basic-function-of-popular-music-is-to-create-an-environment-for/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“Blessed are you, embrace of the falling, foundation of the light, master of the human accident.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/blessed-are-you-embrace-of-the-falling-foundation-of-the-light-master/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I continually blacken pages and scribble away, so I always have a number of songs that are half-finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-continually-blacken-pages-and-scribble-away-so-i-always-have-a/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I have nothing against the Queen of England. Even in my heart I never resented her for not being Jackie Kennedy. She is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-have-nothing-against-the-queen-of-england-even-in-my-heart-i-never/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I loved you when you opened like a lily to the heat; you see I’m just another snowman standing in the rain and sleet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-loved-you-when-you-opened-like-a-lily-to-the-heat-you-see-i-m-just/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [It's time that we began to laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/it-s-time-that-we-began-to-laugh-and-cry-and-cry-and-laugh-about-it/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [“I followed the course From chaos to art Desire the horse Depression the cart”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-followed-the-course-from-chaos-to-art-desire-the-horse-depression/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) [Explore all 543 Leonard Cohen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) ## More Atmosphere quotes > [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/) [Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/) > [My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram, or the most intricate analysis, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/my-mind-rebels-at-stagnation-give-me-problems-give-me-work-give-me/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [Man will not always stay on Earth; the pursuit of light and space will lead him to penetrate the bounds of the atmosphere, timidly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/man-will-not-always-stay-on-earth-the-pursuit-of-light-and-space-will/) [Konstantin Tsiolkovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konstantin-tsiolkovsky/) > [Pause before you get home and prepare your heart. A peaceful heart leads to a peaceful atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-burns/pause-before-you-get-home-and-prepare-your-heart-a-peaceful-heart/) [Jim Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-burns/) > [Sometimes a minute is really the difference between success and failure. There are times when you finish with ten seconds left, and one extra…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-symon/sometimes-a-minute-is-really-the-difference-between-success-and/) [Michael Symon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-symon/) > [Christianity does not oppose debauchery and uncontrollable passions and the like as much as it opposes... flat mediocrity, this nauseating atmosphere, this homey, civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/christianity-does-not-oppose-debauchery-and-uncontrollable-passions/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [Washington bureaucrats have classified the very air we exhale as a pollutant and have gone unchallenged in this incredible assertion. The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“Atmosphere" is a massive song. A lot of people say it's their favorite Joy Division song, but it's not mine; it reminds me too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hook/atmosphere-is-a-massive-song-a-lot-of-people-say-it-s-their-favorite/) [Peter Hook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hook/) > [Establish an atmosphere that energizes you. Some creative people flourish in confusion; others need to be free from interruption. Many prepare themselves for work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-leland/establish-an-atmosphere-that-energizes-you-some-creative-people/) [Nita Leland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-leland/) > [Each year we pump at least six billion tons of heat-trapping carbon into the innermost layer of our atmosphere, whose outer extent is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-gelbspan/each-year-we-pump-at-least-six-billion-tons-of-heat-trapping-carbon/) [Ross Gelbspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-gelbspan/) > [It was clear to me that the White House's solemn atmosphere would not civilize Trump. But the merciless nepotism with which he conducts politics,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/it-was-clear-to-me-that-the-white-house-s-solemn-atmosphere-would-not/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [“Bjerknes had come up with equations capable of describing the behavior of the atmosphere. The state of the atmosphere at any point could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-cullen/bjerknes-had-come-up-with-equations-capable-of-describing-the/) [Heidi Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-cullen/) > [What one thing does the world need most today-apart, that is, from the all-inclusive thing we call righteousness? Aren't you inclined to agree that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/what-one-thing-does-the-world-need-most-today-apart-that-is-from-the/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [ Jowett, in his day, did probably more than any other single man to let some fresh air into the exhausted atmosphere of the \[Oxford\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-jowett/jowett-in-his-day-did-probably-more-than-any-other-single-man-to-let/) [Benjamin Jowett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-jowett/) [Browse all 1,572 Atmosphere quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atmosphere/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What is most original in a man's nature is often that which is most desperate. Thus new systems are forced on the world by men who simply cannot bear the pain of living with what is. Creators care nothing for their systems except that they be unique. 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