Hell is out of fashion -- institutional hells at any rate. The populated infernos of the 20th century are more private affairs, the gaps between the bars are the sutures of one's own skull. A valid hell is one from which there is a possibility of redemption, even if this is never achieved, the dungeons of an architecture of grace whose spires point to some kind of heaven. The institutional hells of the present century are reached with one-way tickets, marked Nagasaki and Buchenwald, worlds of terminal horror even more final than the grave.

Summary

This quote, by author J.G. Ballard, suggests that traditional notions of hell as an institutional punishment have become outdated. Instead, the "hells" of the 20th century are more personal and internalized. They are the psychological confines of one's own mind, where redemption may be possible but rarely attained. Ballard contrasts these private hells with the horrors of the 20th century, such as Nagasaki and Buchenwald, which represent inescapable and definitive nightmares. By highlighting the idea of redemption and an architecture of grace, the quote explores the concept of finding hope and meaning within even the most despairing circumstances.

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