--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: These wars have been so great, they are…" description: "\"“These wars have been so great, they are forgotten Like the Egyptian dynasts. My confrere In whose thick boots I stood, were you amazed To wander throu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/644/louis-simpson-36946_dream_these-wars-have-been-so-great-they-are-f_87565.png" --- # These wars have been so great, they are forgotten Like the… ![“These wars have been so great, they are forgotten Like the Egyptian dynasts. My confrere In whose thick boots I stood, were you amazed To wander through my brain four decades later As I have wandered in a dream through yours? The violence of waking life disrupts The order of our death. Strange…” quote by Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/644/louis-simpson-36946_dream_these-wars-have-been-so-great-they-are-f_87565.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/644/louis-simpson-36946_dream_these-wars-have-been-so-great-they-are-f_87565.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/644/louis-simpson-36946_dream_these-wars-have-been-so-great-they-are-f_87565.png) > ““These wars have been so great, they are forgotten Like the Egyptian dynasts. My confrere In whose thick boots I stood, were you amazed To wander through my brain four decades later As I have wandered in a dream through yours? The violence of waking life disrupts The order of our death. Strange dreams occur, For dreams are licensed as they never were.”” [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. War erases memory, turning monumental conflict into forgotten history, while personal dreams and subconscious reflections preserve fragments of that trauma. **In simple terms:** Wars fade from collective memory, but linger in personal dreams. Key Takeaway Conflict’s legacy lives in subconscious memory. Themes war memory dreams history trauma Mood melancholic reflective Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - veteran therapy - historical documentaries - literary analysis - dream interpretation workshops Key Concepts collective amnesia psychic imprint Practical Applications - Incorporate personal narratives into war memorials - Use dream analysis in trauma counseling Questions to Reflect On - How do personal dreams shape our understanding of historical events? - Can artistic expression compensate for collective forgetting? A Different Perspective Dreams are subjective; they may distort rather than preserve factual history. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Strange dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange-dreams/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [The most important dreams occur while people are fully awake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mardy-grothe/the-most-important-dreams-occur-while-people-are-fully-awake/) [Mardy Grothe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mardy-grothe/) > [Strange dreams are better than no dreams at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/strange-dreams-are-better-than-no-dreams-at-all/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [When music sounds, gone is the earth I know, And all her lovelier things even lovelier grow; Her flowers in vision flame, her forest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-de-la-mare/when-music-sounds-gone-is-the-earth-i-know-and-all-her-lovelier/) [Walter de La Mare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-de-la-mare/) > [This may sound strange but I had dreams as a kid of doing exactly what I ended up doing in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-hart/this-may-sound-strange-but-i-had-dreams-as-a-kid-of-doing-exactly/) [Corey Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-hart/) > [As a young boy, I had strange dreams of affecting people and somehow being instrumental in changing the makeup of Africa and helping to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/djimon-hounsou/as-a-young-boy-i-had-strange-dreams-of-affecting-people-and-somehow/) [Djimon Hounsou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/djimon-hounsou/) > [My experience of malaria was just taking anti-malarials, which give you strange dreams, because I don't want to get malaria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/my-experience-of-malaria-was-just-taking-anti-malarials-which-give/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [It’s strange how dreams get under your skin and give your heart a test for what’s real and what’s imaginary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/it-s-strange-how-dreams-get-under-your-skin-and-give-your-heart-a/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [The happiness consists in realizing that it is all a great strange dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-happiness-consists-in-realizing-that-it-is-all-a-great-strange/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [You certainly do have strange dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-certainly-do-have-strange-dreams/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“I used to rush into strange dreams at night: dreams many-coloured, agitated, full of the ideal, the stirring, the stormy--dreams where, amidst unusual scenes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-used-to-rush-into-strange-dreams-at-night-dreams-many-coloured/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“Subterrenes and Strange Dreams”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-winfield/subterrenes-and-strange-dreams/) [Ryan Winfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-winfield/) > [This life we live is a strange dream, and I don't believe at all any account men give of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-life-we-live-is-a-strange-dream-and-i-don-t-believe-at-all-any/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Everything is perfect on the street again, the world is permeated with roses of happiness all the time, but none of us know it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/everything-is-perfect-on-the-street-again-the-world-is-permeated-with/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [She'd slept terribly the night before. The room, the bed, were both comfortable enough, but she'd been plagued with strange dreams, the sort that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/she-d-slept-terribly-the-night-before-the-room-the-bed-were-both/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [Its strange how dreams get under your skin and give your heart a test for whats real and whats imaginary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-strange-how-dreams-get-under-your-skin-and-give-your-heart-a-test/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Louis Simpson > [The Open Road goes to the used-car lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/the-open-road-goes-to-the-used-car-lot/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [It's complicated, being an American, Having the money and the bad conscience, both at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/it-s-complicated-being-an-american-having-the-money-and-the-bad/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [I gave no prescriptions, And those who have taken my moods for prophecies Mistake the matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/i-gave-no-prescriptions-and-those-who-have-taken-my-moods-for/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [For people may not know what they think about politics in the Balkans, or the vexed question of men and women, but everyone has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/for-people-may-not-know-what-they-think-about-politics-in-the-balkans/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [The aim of military training is not just to prepare men for battle, but to make them long for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/the-aim-of-military-training-is-not-just-to-prepare-men-for-battle/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [All that grave weight of America Cancelled! Like Greece and Rome. The future in ruins!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/all-that-grave-weight-of-america-cancelled-like-greece-and-rome-the/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [Paranoia imposes its own vision on the external world; it differs from other kinds of visionary experience in that the paranoid wants others to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/paranoia-imposes-its-own-vision-on-the-external-world-it-differs-from/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [The treasures of Cathay were never found. In this America, this wilderness Where the axe echoes with a lonely sound, The generations labor to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/the-treasures-of-cathay-were-never-found-in-this-america-this/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [In my grandmother's house there was always chicken soup And talk of the old country--mud and boards, Poverty, The snow falling down and necks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/in-my-grandmother-s-house-there-was-always-chicken-soup-and-talk-of/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [“Do not write. I am sad, and want my light put out. Summers in your absence are as dark as a room. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/do-not-write-i-am-sad-and-want-my-light-put-out-summers-in-your/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) > [Being shelled is the main work of an infantry soldier, which no one talks about. Everyone has his own way of going about it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-simpson/being-shelled-is-the-main-work-of-an-infantry-soldier-which-no-one/) [Louis Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) [Explore all 12 Louis Simpson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-simpson/) ## More Dream quotes > [“Once we become sensitive to dreams, we discover that every dynamic in a dream is manifesting itself in some way in our practical lives”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-johnson/once-we-become-sensitive-to-dreams-we-discover-that-every-dynamic-in/) [Robert A. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-johnson/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [“Not that it matters, when you dream, there's no outside or in. Your mind is an unimaginable bloom. A willow catkin as big as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-shapero/not-that-it-matters-when-you-dream-there-s-no-outside-or-in-your-mind/) [Rich Shapero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-shapero/) > [Academically, I was never that interested. I skipped classes. My biggest dream was to have a coffee shop, but I had no idea how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-espinosa/academically-i-was-never-that-interested-i-skipped-classes-my-biggest/) [Daniel Espinosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-espinosa/) > [“As dreams are the healing songs from the wilderness of our unconscious - So wild animals, wild plants, wild landscapes are the healing dreams…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-pendell/as-dreams-are-the-healing-songs-from-the-wilderness-of-our/) [Dale Pendell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-pendell/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [“Doing the work to transform your dreams into reality is like walking across the earth. It can be that hard, and it can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dragos-bratasanu/doing-the-work-to-transform-your-dreams-into-reality-is-like-walking/) [Dragos Bratasanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dragos-bratasanu/) > [As far as Im concerned, I didnt dream - ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/as-far-as-im-concerned-i-didnt-dream-ever/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I have long felt that the way to keep children out of trouble is to keep them interested in things. Lecturing to children is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/i-have-long-felt-that-the-way-to-keep-children-out-of-trouble-is-to/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [I guess, it's a father's dream for his daughter to be known around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-soberano/i-guess-it-s-a-father-s-dream-for-his-daughter-to-be-known-around-the/) [Liza Soberano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-soberano/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Sometimes life seems like a dream, especially when I look down and see that I forgot to put on my pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/sometimes-life-seems-like-a-dream-especially-when-i-look-down-and-see/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [“I had a dream. I had an awesome dream.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-had-a-dream-i-had-an-awesome-dream/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“His dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/his-dream-must-have-seemed-so-close-that-he-could-hardly-fail-to/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) [Browse all 26,527 Dream quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“These wars have been so great, they are forgotten Like the Egyptian dynasts. My confrere In whose thick boots I stood, were you amazed To wander through my brain four decades later As I have wandered in a dream through yours? The violence of waking life disrupts The order of our death. 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