In an era of stress and anxiety, when the present seems unstable and the future unlikely, the natural response is to retreat and withdraw from reality, taking recourse either in fantasies of the future or in modified visions of a half-imagines past
psychology
I still can't believe it . . . him comin' here everyday, nobody realizin'. Still, that's life: lotta stuff happens under the waterline.
reality
Look at him now, poor fellow. That's what a dose of reality does for you...Never touch the stuff myself, you understand. Find it gets in the way of the hallucinations.
Nothing ends, Adrian. Nothing ever ends.
dr-manhatanreality
All we ever see of stars are their old photographs.
dr-manhatanstars
So when you find yourself locked onto an unpleasant train of thought, heading for the places in your past where the screaming is unbearable, remember there's always madness. Madness is the emergency exit.
madness
...My point is, I went crazy. When I saw what a black, awful joke the world was. I went crazy as a coot! I admit it! Why can't you?
madnessthe-joker
We have laboured long to build a heaven, only to find it populated with horrors.
progress
Artists use lies to tell the truth. Yes, I created a lie. But because you believed it, you found something true about yourself.
on-fictionparablesstorytelling
Authority, when first detecting chaos at its heels, will entertain the vilest schemes to save its orderly facade.
anarchismauthority
Authority allows two roles: the torturer and the tortured. Twists people into joyless mannequins that fear and hate, while culture plunges into the abyss.
authority
It's cold and it's mean spirited and I don't like it here anymore.
england
As I see it, part of the art of being a hero is knowing when you don't need to be one anymore.
heroism
Janey accuses me of chasing jailbait. She bursts into angry tears, asking if it's because she's getting older. It's true. She's aging more noticeably every day while I am standing still. I prefer the stillness here. I am tired of Earth. These people. I am tired of being caught in the tangle of their lives.
agingdr-manhatanrealizationtired
There are people. There are stories. The people think they shape the stories, but the reverse is often closer to the truth.
peopletruth