James Joyce — Quote from Stephen Hero
“Any object, intensely regarded, may be a gate of access to the incorruptible eon of the gods.”
Stephen Hero (1944)
Concepts: meaning, authenticity, love
Resonant Quotes
- “The only journey is the one within.” — Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet Joyce's external object becoming a gateway to the divine perfectly complements Rilke's inward journey, revealing how ...
- “A book must be the axe for the frozen sea within us.” — Franz Kafka, Letters to Oskar Pollak Both propose that intense engagement—whether Kafka's violent axe or Joyce's concentrated regard—can shatter the munda...
- “Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot l...” — James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time Both quotes explore how intense engagement—whether with objects or love—strips away illusions to reveal deeper, trans...
- “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.” — Albert Camus, Return to Tipasa Both quotes reveal how intense attention or experience can unveil transcendent realities hidden within ordinary circu...
- “The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man's heart. One m...” — Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus Both discover transcendence through intensity of engagement—Camus finds fulfillment in the struggle itself while Joyc...
- “The darker the night, the brighter the stars. The deeper the grief, the close...” — Fyodor Dostoevsky, Crime and Punishment Both reveal how extremity of attention or condition can become a portal to transcendence—Joyce's aesthetic intensity ...
- “Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling ...” — Rainer Maria Rilke, The Book of Hours Both quotes advocate for radical receptivity to experience—Joyce's intense regard transforms the mundane into the sac...
- “In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invinci...” — Albert Camus, Return to Tipasa Both authors describe how intense attention to difficult experiences can reveal transcendent dimensions—Camus's deep ...