Skip to content

Beginning of life Quote by Robert Musil

“A man matters, his experiences matter, but in a city, where experiences come by the thousands, we can no longer relate them to ourselves, and this is of course the beginning of life’s notorious turning into abstraction.“ „There is always something ghostly about living constantly in a well-ordered…” quote by Robert Musil
Download Open image
““A man matters, his experiences matter, but in a city, where experiences come by the thousands, we can no longer relate them to ourselves, and this is of course the beginning of life’s notorious turning into abstraction.“ „There is always something ghostly about living constantly in a well-ordered state. You cannot step into the street or drink a glass of water or get on a streetcar without touching the balanced lever of gigantic apparatus of laws and interrelations, setting them in motion or letting them maintain you in your peaceful existence; one knows hardly any of these levers, which reach deep into the inner workings and, coming out of the other side, lose themselves in a network whose structure has never yet been unraveled by anyone. So one denies their existence, just as the average citizen denies the air, maintaining that it is empty space. But all these things that one denied, these colorless, odorless,tasteless, weightless, and morally indefinable things such as water, air, space, money, and the passing of time, turn out in truth to be the most important things of all, and this gives life a certain spooky quality.””

Robert Musil

About This Quote

Source Novel: The Man Without Qualities, Robert Musil, 1930

In modern society, individual experiences become lost amid countless others, leading to a sense of abstraction and disconnection from essential, unseen forces that shape life.

In simple terms: Too many experiences make life feel abstract and disconnected.

Key Takeaway

Recognize hidden systems that affect daily life.

Themes

alienation abstraction systems perception

Mood

contemplative melancholic

Type

philosophical reflective

When to use this quote

  • urban living
  • bureaucracy
  • environmental awareness
  • personal reflection

Key Concepts

existentialism social theory complex systems

Questions to Reflect On

  • How do you stay grounded amid overwhelming complexity?
  • What unseen forces shape your daily choices?
A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on abstraction can ignore concrete personal agency.

4.2 out of 5 (4 ratings)

More by Robert Musil

Explore all 139 Robert Musil quotes

More Beginning of life quotes

Browse all 63 Beginning of life quotes