Eternity Quote by Vladimir Nabokov
““A wonderful point in favor of some kind of hereafter is this: When the mind rejects as childishly absurd a paradise with musical angels or abstract colonnades with Horace and Milton in togas conversing and walking together through the eternal twilight, or the protracted voluptas of the orient or any other eternity -- such as the one with devils and porcupines -- we forget that if we could have imagined life before living it would have seemed more improbable than all our hereafters””
About This Quote
Source Essay: Reflections on Afterlife, Vladimir Nabokov, 1970
The quote mocks fanciful afterlife images, suggesting that if we could imagine life before living, it would seem more unlikely than any imagined eternity.
In simple terms: Imagined afterlife seems absurd compared to real life.
Key Takeaway
Question our assumptions about the afterlife.
Themes
philosophy
skepticism
afterlife
Mood
thoughtful
ironic
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- religious debate
- personal belief
- literary criticism
Key Concepts
existential doubt
imagination
probability
Questions to Reflect On
- What does this say about human need for comforting narratives?
- How do we balance imagination with realism?
A Different Perspective
Such imagery can distract from confronting mortality.
![“...under no circumstances would he [Humbert Humbert] have interfered with the innocence of a child, if there was the least risk of a row.” quote by Vladimir Nabokov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0f0/vladimir-nabokov-198_children_under-no-circumstances-would-he-humbert_16228.jpg)
