Boys Quote by W. H. Auden
“In Brueghel’s Icarus, for instance: how everything turns away Quite leisurely from the disaster, the ploughman may Have heard the splash, the forsaken cry, But for him it was not an important failure; the sun shone As it had to on the white legs disappearing into the green water, And the expensive ship that must have seen Something amazing, a boy falling out of the sky, Had somewhere to get to and sailed calmly on.”
About This Quote
Source Poem: “Musée des Beaux Arts”, 1938, null
People often ignore others' suffering, focusing on their own routine.
In simple terms: Indifference to tragedy is common.
Key Takeaway
Cultivate empathy, notice others' pain.
Themes
empathy
indifference
humanity
Mood
reflective
somber
Type
literary
philosophical
When to use this quote
- daily life
- public disasters
- personal reflection
Key Concepts
moral blindness
social neglect
Questions to Reflect On
- How does society normalize ignoring suffering?
- What can you do when you notice unnoticed pain?
A Different Perspective
Not all observers are indifferent; some may be unaware.
![“The scene [Bruegel's 'Landscape with the Fall of Icarus'] is filled with a vast field, and a cow and a farmer plowing. In the left-hand corner is a tiny ocean the size of a palm, and there, I can barely make it out, the two legs of a man who fell headlong into the sea. This is called the Fall of…” quote by Hwang Sŏk-yŏng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/063/hwang-s-k-y-ng-53361_day-life_the-scene-bruegel-s-landscape-with-the-f_2346650.jpg)
