--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Because you have no memory for things…" description: "\"Because you have no memory for things that happened ten or twenty years ago, you're still mouthing the same nonsense as two thousand years ago. Worse, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/wilhelm-reich-2565_absurdity_because-you-have-no-memory-for-things-th_2138021.jpg" --- # Because you have no memory for things that happened ten or… ![“Because you have no memory for things that happened ten or twenty years ago, you're still mouthing the same nonsense as two thousand years ago. Worse, you cling with might and main to such absurdities as 'race,' 'class,' 'nation,' and the obligation to observe a religion and repress your love.” quote by Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/wilhelm-reich-2565_absurdity_because-you-have-no-memory-for-things-th_2138021.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/wilhelm-reich-2565_absurdity_because-you-have-no-memory-for-things-th_2138021.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f9/wilhelm-reich-2565_absurdity_because-you-have-no-memory-for-things-th_2138021.jpg) > “Because you have no memory for things that happened ten or twenty years ago, you're still mouthing the same nonsense as two thousand years ago. Worse, you cling with might and main to such absurdities as 'race,' 'class,' 'nation,' and the obligation to observe a religion and repress your love.” [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Historical patterns repeat because people forget past lessons, clinging to outdated identities and beliefs. **In simple terms:** We repeat old mistakes due to forgotten history. Key Takeaway Learn from history to break cycles. Themes history identity politics Mood critical reflective Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - education reform - public discourse - intercultural dialogue - media literacy Key Concepts psychology social conditioning Questions to Reflect On - What past lessons are we ignoring? - How can societies foster collective memory? A Different Perspective Changing deep-seated beliefs is difficult and slow. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absurdity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurdity/) [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Happened Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened-years-279254/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Memory Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-things-279415/) [Might](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/might/) [Nonsense](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonsense/) [Nonsense Thousand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonsense-thousand-4438575/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Thousand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) [Twenties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twenties/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-ago/) ## Related quotes > [Crude absurdities, trivial nonsense, and sublime truths are equally potent in readying people for self-sacrifice if they are accepted as the sole, eternal truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/crude-absurdities-trivial-nonsense-and-sublime-truths-are-equally/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [What is the benefit of fasting in our body while filling our souls with innumerable evils? He who does not play at dice, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-basil/what-is-the-benefit-of-fasting-in-our-body-while-filling-our-souls/) [Saint Basil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-basil/) > [I let my game do the talking. I've had incidents like that but when I compare my own story to the stories that have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-ashley/i-let-my-game-do-the-talking-i-ve-had-incidents-like-that-but-when-i/) [Maurice Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-ashley/) > [I can remember something that happened three years ago but not five minutes ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-can-remember-something-that-happened-three-years-ago-but-not-five/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What I love that has happened for years now with 'Drag Race' is the queens can go on to have any kind of career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jinkx-monsoon/what-i-love-that-has-happened-for-years-now-with-drag-race-is-the/) [Jinkx Monsoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jinkx-monsoon/) > [But a funny thing happened four years later. I was invited to play for an alumni team against the Red Wings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-lindsay/but-a-funny-thing-happened-four-years-later-i-was-invited-to-play-for/) [Ted Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-lindsay/) > [I thought of the things that had happened to me over the years, and of how little I had made happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/i-thought-of-the-things-that-had-happened-to-me-over-the-years-and-of/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) > [by now you've already formed your own impression. you believe that an act committed a lifetime ago defines a man, or you believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/by-now-you-ve-already-formed-your-own-impression-you-believe-that-an/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Contrary to popular belief, the past was not more eventful than the present. If it seems so it is because when you look backward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/contrary-to-popular-belief-the-past-was-not-more-eventful-than-the/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [No one can ever write about anything that happened to him after he was twelve years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignazio-silone/no-one-can-ever-write-about-anything-that-happened-to-him-after-he/) [Ignazio Silone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignazio-silone/) > [If your not the same as u were a few years ago, then what happened a few years ago doesn't f\*\*\*ing matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevinterribly/if-your-not-the-same-as-u-were-a-few-years-ago-then-what-happened-a/) [KevinTerribly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevinterribly/) > [“Technically a team could lose both games and still advance, but that hadn't happened in years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-sakavic/technically-a-team-could-lose-both-games-and-still-advance-but-that/) [Nora Sakavic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-sakavic/) > [I've been around a long time, and it seemed for the longest time like I was the young guy. Now, all of a sudden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-orton/i-ve-been-around-a-long-time-and-it-seemed-for-the-longest-time-like/) [Randy Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-orton/) > [In '94, I started writing a novel about an enormous terrorist act that destroyed the United States. The novel takes place twenty years after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/in-94-i-started-writing-a-novel-about-an-enormous-terrorist-act-that/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [“And since when had I become the guy that things happened to ten years ago?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/and-since-when-had-i-become-the-guy-that-things-happened-to-ten-years/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) ## More by Wilhelm Reich > [The question of how and why the encrustations and rigidifications of human emotional life are brought about led directly into the realm of vegetative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/the-question-of-how-and-why-the-encrustations-and-rigidifications-of/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“Saw a film on cancer yesterday, shown by the English delegation. No doubt about it. I'm right. "Migratory cancer cells" are amoebic formations. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/saw-a-film-on-cancer-yesterday-shown-by-the-english-delegation-no/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“All human philosophy is riddled with the nightmare of searching in vain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/all-human-philosophy-is-riddled-with-the-nightmare-of-searching-in/) [wilhelm reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [I know that what you call 'God' really exists, but not in the form you think; God is primal cosmic energy, the love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/i-know-that-what-you-call-god-really-exists-but-not-in-the-form-you/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [People should be \_very\_ careful when choosing the future fathers and mothers of their children. For that reason alone, it is extremely mean to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/people-should-be-very-careful-when-choosing-the-future-fathers-and/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“Gradually it became clear that it is a fundamental error to try to give the sexual act a psychological interpretation, to attribute to it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/gradually-it-became-clear-that-it-is-a-fundamental-error-to-try-to/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [Mistaking insolence for freedom has always been the hallmark of the slave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/mistaking-insolence-for-freedom-has-always-been-the-hallmark-of-the/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“Build your house on granite. By granite I mean your nature that you are torturing to death, the love in your child's body, your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/build-your-house-on-granite-by-granite-i-mean-your-nature-that-you/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [The vital energies regulate themselves naturally without compulsive duty or compulsive morality both of which are sure signs of existing antisocial impulses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/the-vital-energies-regulate-themselves-naturally-without-compulsive/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“You'll have a good, secure life when being alive means more to you than security, love more than money, your freedom more than public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/you-ll-have-a-good-secure-life-when-being-alive-means-more-to-you/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [The suppression of natural sexual gratification leads to various kinds of substitute gratifications. Natural aggression, for example, becomes brutal sadism which then is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/the-suppression-of-natural-sexual-gratification-leads-to-various/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [The cry for freedom is a sign of suppression. It will not cease to ring as long as man feels himself captive. As diverse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/the-cry-for-freedom-is-a-sign-of-suppression-it-will-not-cease-to/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“Race theorists, who are as old as imperialism itself, want to achieve racial purity in peoples whose interbreeding, as a result of the expansion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/race-theorists-who-are-as-old-as-imperialism-itself-want-to-achieve/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [You yourself create all your misery, hour after hour, day after day. You think the goal justifies the means, even the vile means. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/you-yourself-create-all-your-misery-hour-after-hour-day-after-day-you/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) > [“I want you to stop being subhuman and become 'yourself'. 'Yourself,' I say. Not the newspaper you read, not your vicious neighbor's opinion, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilhelm-reich/i-want-you-to-stop-being-subhuman-and-become-yourself-yourself-i-say/) [Wilhelm Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) [Explore all 130 Wilhelm Reich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilhelm-reich/) ## More Absurdity quotes > [Even though you can't expect to defeat the absurdity of the world, you must make that attempt. That's morality, that's religion. That's art. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-ochs/even-though-you-can-t-expect-to-defeat-the-absurdity-of-the-world-you/) [Phil Ochs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-ochs/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [For it is an absurdity to call a country civilized in which a decent and industrious man, laboriously mastering a trade which is valuble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/for-it-is-an-absurdity-to-call-a-country-civilized-in-which-a-decent/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [One would think that a system loaded with such gross and vulgar absurdities as Scripture religion is could never have obtained credit; yet we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/one-would-think-that-a-system-loaded-with-such-gross-and-vulgar/) [Thomas Paine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-paine/) > [Such squeamish youths as cannot bear to be connected with a little absurdity are not worth a regret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/such-squeamish-youths-as-cannot-bear-to-be-connected-with-a-little/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [Thought of the incomprehensible sequence of changes and chances that make up a life, all the beauties and horrors and absurdities whose conjunctions create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/thought-of-the-incomprehensible-sequence-of-changes-and-chances-that/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [We all live inside the terrible engine of authority, and it grinds and shrieks and burns so that no one will say: lines on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/we-all-live-inside-the-terrible-engine-of-authority-and-it-grinds-and/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Desire is this absurdity that holds open the infinity of possibility. Ever optimistic, ever resourceful, desire tells us what it sees as it speeds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-farley/desire-is-this-absurdity-that-holds-open-the-infinity-of-possibility/) [Wendy Farley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-farley/) > [I've always felt that comedy doesn't just come from misery. It comes from an absurdity around that misery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-amstell/i-ve-always-felt-that-comedy-doesn-t-just-come-from-misery-it-comes/) [Simon Amstell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-amstell/) > [Unaware of the absurdity of it, we introduce our own petty household rules into the economy of the universe for which the life of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-herzen/unaware-of-the-absurdity-of-it-we-introduce-our-own-petty-household/) [Alexander Herzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-herzen/) > [“Christianity would be helpless without the idea of free will and the idea of free will would be helpless without incongruity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kedar-joshi/christianity-would-be-helpless-without-the-idea-of-free-will-and-the/) [Kedar Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kedar-joshi/) > [Sensible Catholics have for generations been ignoring the views on contraception held by reactionary old men in the Vatican, but alas, since it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-c-grayling/sensible-catholics-have-for-generations-been-ignoring-the-views-on/) [A.C. Grayling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-grayling/) > [The tales of our exploits will survive as long as the human voice itself,' he said. 'And even after that, when the robots recall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/the-tales-of-our-exploits-will-survive-as-long-as-the-human-voice/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Life packed a clever one-two punch: cruelty and absurdity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/life-packed-a-clever-one-two-punch-cruelty-and-absurdity/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) [Browse all 689 Absurdity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absurdity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Because you have no memory for things that happened ten or twenty years ago, you're still mouthing the same nonsense as two thousand years ago. 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