---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The darkness that had come in from the…"
description: "\"The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean covered the city so detested by the procurator...\" — Mikhail Bulgakov"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg"
---

#  The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean…

![“The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean covered the city so detested by the procurator...” quote by Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg)

> “The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean covered the city so detested by the procurator...”

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Describes oppressive darkness spreading over a city under a corrupt official.

**In simple terms:** Oppression feels like a suffocating darkness.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and resist authoritarian control.

Themes

political oppression urban decay corruption

Mood

somber critical

Type

literary political commentary

When to use this quote

- censorship
- government overreach
- war zones
- urban neglect

Key Concepts

totalitarianism psychological oppression social decay

Questions to Reflect On

- What darkness does your community face?
- How can individuals illuminate oppression?

A Different Perspective

Metaphor may obscure literal meaning.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [City Detested](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/city-detested-4140939/) [Covered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covered/) [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Darkness Come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness-come-623967/) [Detested](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detested-286595/) [Detested Procurator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/detested-procurator-4140938/) [Procurator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procurator-410258/)

## Related quotes

> [“The Procurator did not squint because the sun dazzled him. No! For some reason, he did not want to see the group of condemned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-procurator-did-not-squint-because-the-sun-dazzled-him-no-for-some/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [The procurator studied the new arrival with avid, and slightly fearful eyes. It was the kind of look one gives someone one has heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-procurator-studied-the-new-arrival-with-avid-and-slightly-fearful/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“And as long as it is so believed, Procurator, and as long as we of Earth are treated as pariahs, you are going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/and-as-long-as-it-is-so-believed-procurator-and-as-long-as-we-of/)

[Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/)

> [Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/walk-while-ye-have-the-light-lest-darkness-come-upon-you/)

[John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/)

> [“In trouble and from darkness you come, Ged, yet your coming is joy to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/in-trouble-and-from-darkness-you-come-ged-yet-your-coming-is-joy-to-me/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

> [“Darkness! Come not for my soul. It is light I seek. Illumination, my goal. Your violent hand leads me to unsafe ground.My enemies, hide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/darkness-come-not-for-my-soul-it-is-light-i-seek-illumination-my-goal/)

[Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/)

> [“out of darkness i come, a woman. and on i go and on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrud-kolmar/out-of-darkness-i-come-a-woman-and-on-i-go-and-on/)

[Gertrud Kolmar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrud-kolmar/)

> [“If you were not cast into the abyss, you would have never groped, reached as far as you could reach, to grasp for anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c/if-you-were-not-cast-into-the-abyss-you-would-have-never-groped/)

[C. JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c/)

> [“The two of us were bound together by the thread of grief, but it wasn't just our mutual losses that united us. We'd survived…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-rothert/the-two-of-us-were-bound-together-by-the-thread-of-grief-but-it-wasn/)

[Brenda Rothert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-rothert/)

> [“We were always meant to live in darkness, even with the light. Five billion years from now the sun will stop shining and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arti-manani/we-were-always-meant-to-live-in-darkness-even-with-the-light-five/)

[Arti Manani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arti-manani/)

> [You darkness, that I come from, I love you more than all the fires that fence in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/you-darkness-that-i-come-from-i-love-you-more-than-all-the-fires-that-2/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [One is responsible to life: It is the small beacon in that terrifying darkness from which we come and to which we shall return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-baldwin/one-is-responsible-to-life-it-is-the-small-beacon-in-that-terrifying/)

[James A. Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-baldwin/)

> [“Through darkness you have come to your hope, and have now all your desire. Use well the days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/through-darkness-you-have-come-to-your-hope-and-have-now-all-your/)

[J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/)

> [You darkness, that I come from, I love you more than all the fires that fence in the world, for the fire makes a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/you-darkness-that-i-come-from-i-love-you-more-than-all-the-fires-that/)

[Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/)

> [“The orb shone bright, but darkness had come to Eden and Carys didn’t know is there was any light that could chase this kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joelle-charbonneau/the-orb-shone-bright-but-darkness-had-come-to-eden-and-carys-didn-t/)

[Joelle Charbonneau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joelle-charbonneau/)

## More by Mikhail Bulgakov

> [“The Procurator did not squint because the sun dazzled him. No! For some reason, he did not want to see the group of condemned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-procurator-did-not-squint-because-the-sun-dazzled-him-no-for-some/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“…i głośno, radośnie oznajmił: - Utną panu głowę!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/i-g-o-no-rado-nie-oznajmi-utn-panu-g-ow/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [If it is true that cowardice is the most grave vice, then the dog, at least, is not guilty of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/if-it-is-true-that-cowardice-is-the-most-grave-vice-then-the-dog-at/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“-No, to rzeczywiście nie są pieniądze – lekceważąco powiedział do swego gościa Woland – chociaż szczerze mówiąc, nawet tyle nie jest panu potrzebne. -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/no-to-rzeczywi-cie-nie-s-pieni-dze-lekcewa-co-powiedzia-do-swego-go/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [The tongue can conceal the truth, but the eyes never! You're asked an unexpected question, you don't even flinch, it takes just a second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-tongue-can-conceal-the-truth-but-the-eyes-never-you-re-asked-an/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [This twenty-year-old boy was distinguished from childhood by strange qualities, a dreamer and an eccentric. A girl fell in love with him, and he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/this-twenty-year-old-boy-was-distinguished-from-childhood-by-strange/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“You should never ask anyone for anything. Never—and especially from those who are more powerful than yourself. They will make the offer and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/you-should-never-ask-anyone-for-anything-never-and-especially-from/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [Cowardice is the greatest sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/cowardice-is-the-greatest-sin/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“Too bad!' the feisty poet responded. 'Yes, too bad!' the stranger agreed, his eye flashing, and went on: 'But here is a question that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/too-bad-the-feisty-poet-responded-yes-too-bad-the-stranger-agreed-his/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“Don't be afraid, your majesty... Don't be afraid, your majesty, the blood has long since drained away into the earth and grapes have grown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/don-t-be-afraid-your-majesty-don-t-be-afraid-your-majesty-the-blood/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“But this is what disturbs me: if there is no God, then, the question is, who is in control of man's life and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/but-this-is-what-disturbs-me-if-there-is-no-god-then-the-question-is/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“If you’ve been exiled, why don’t you send me word of yourself? People do send word. Have you stopped loving me? No, for some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/if-you-ve-been-exiled-why-don-t-you-send-me-word-of-yourself-people/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“Tu nieznajomy uprzejmie zdjął beret i pisarzom nie pozostawało nic innego, jak wstać i ukłonić się.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/tu-nieznajomy-uprzejmie-zdj-beret-i-pisarzom-nie-pozostawa-o-nic/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“Thou art a black God! I curse Thee, God of thieves, their soul and protector! (191)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/thou-art-a-black-god-i-curse-thee-god-of-thieves-their-soul-and/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

> [“-No, więc ja wysłałem depeszę. I co dalej? Popławskiemu zawirowało w głowie, stracił władzę w rękach i nogach, wypuścił z ręki walizkę i opadł…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/no-wi-c-ja-wys-a-em-depesz-i-co-dalej-pop-awskiemu-zawirowa-o-w-g/)

[Mikhail Bulgakov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

[Explore all 186 Mikhail Bulgakov quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/)

## More Cities quotes

> [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/)

[Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/)

> [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/)

[Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/)

> [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/)

[Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/)

> [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/)

[James Cross Giblin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cross-giblin/)

> [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/)

[Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/)

> [I know of not one Republican candidate that would not appear publicly with Mitt Romney and I know many Democrats that don't even want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-sessions/i-know-of-not-one-republican-candidate-that-would-not-appear-publicly/)

[Pete Sessions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-sessions/)

> [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/)

[Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/)

> [We will neglect our cities to our peril, for in neglecting them we neglect the nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-will-neglect-our-cities-to-our-peril-for-in-neglecting-them-we/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [I didn't know the city at all, but I was so happy to be in New York I cried. I was so excited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-didn-t-know-the-city-at-all-but-i-was-so-happy-to-be-in-new-york-i/)

[Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/)

> [Outside of Paris, there is no hope for the cultured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/outside-of-paris-there-is-no-hope-for-the-cultured/)

[Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/)

> [Dawn's faint breath breathes with your mouth at the ends of empty streets. Gray light your eyes, sweet drops of dawn on dark hills.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/dawn-s-faint-breath-breathes-with-your-mouth-at-the-ends-of-empty/)

[Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/)

> [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/)

[Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/)

> [“We have grace of strength to work, to clear our cities of any dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-have-grace-of-strength-to-work-to-clear-our-cities-of-any-dirt/)

[Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/)

> [I was too tired to think. I merely felt the town as a unique unreality. What was it? I knew -- the moon's picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-too-tired-to-think-i-merely-felt-the-town-as-a-unique-unreality/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 7,153 Cities quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean covered the city so detested by the procurator...",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mikhail Bulgakov"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-mediterranean-covered-the-city/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cities"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-mediterranean-covered-the-city/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d93/mikhail-bulgakov-1389_cities_the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-m_2092236.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The darkness that had come in from the Mediterranean covered the city so detested by the procurator...” — Mikhail Bulgakov",
                "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": "Mikhail Bulgakov",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bulgakov/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The darkness that had come in...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-mediterranean-covered-the-city/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bulgakov/the-darkness-that-had-come-in-from-the-mediterranean-covered-the-city/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
