Quote by Milan Kundera

We live everything as it comes, without warning, like an actor going on cold. And what can life be worth if the first rehearsal for life is life itself? That is why life is always a sketch. No sketch is not quite the right word, because a sketch is an outline of something, the groundwork for a picture, whereas the sketch that is our life is a sketch of nothing, an outline with no picture.

We live everything as it comes, without warning, like an act

Summary

This quote suggests that life is unpredictable and often chaotic, comparing it to an actor stepping on stage without any prior preparation. It emphasizes the importance of living in the present moment, as life itself is the only practice we have. The analogy of life being a sketch implies that it lacks a fixed plan or purpose, devoid of a clear image or direction. This highlights the ephemeral and transient nature of existence, implying that life is a continuous process of experimentation without a defined endpoint or outcome.

Topics

Life

By Milan Kundera

Liked the quote? Share it with your friends.

Random Quotations

Do not consider Collectivists as sincere but deluded idealis

Do not consider Collectivists as sincere but deluded idealists. The proposal to enslave some men for the sake of others is not an ideal; brutality is not idealistic, no matter what its purpose. Do not ever say that the desire to do good by force is a good motive. Neither power-lust nor stupidity are good motives.

Idealism

Big house, big car, big breast, big life, big this and big t

Big house, big car, big breast, big life, big this and big that; what is so big about living big? Live on KISS principle not BIG principle.

Inspirational Life Lessons

I'll always be number 1 to myself.

I'll always be number 1 to myself.

Self Respect

But sure there is need of other remedies than dreaming, a we

But sure there is need of other remedies than dreaming, a weak contention of art against nature.

Michel de Montaigne

Dreams

A good boss makes his men realize they have more ability tha

A good boss makes his men realize they have more ability than they think they have so that they consistently do better work than they thought they could.

Charles Erwin Wilson

Men

People sometimes inquire what form of government is most sui

People sometimes inquire what form of government is most suitable for an artist to live under. To this question there is only one answer. The form of government that is most suitable to the artist is no government at all.

Anarchy

He said my dream doesn't mean I am crazy, only that I should

He said my dream doesn't mean I am crazy, only that I should probably love myself a little better, like most people.

Change Love Being Yourself

Be modest, humble, simple. Control your anger.

Be modest, humble, simple. Control your anger.

Anger

My mom doesn't get the whole gay thing, but she loves me.

My mom doesn't get the whole gay thing, but she loves me.

Mom

I tell you, sir, the only safeguard of order and discipline

I tell you, sir, the only safeguard of order and discipline in the modern world is a standardized worker with interchangeable parts. That would solve the entire problem of management.

Labor

I am blackly bored when they are at large and at work; but s

I am blackly bored when they are at large and at work; but somehow I am still more blackly bored when they are shut up in Holloway and we are deprived of them.

When you get together in a group, it becomes like a family,

When you get together in a group, it becomes like a family, with the different personalities and the politics that comes with being in a band. It's different than bringing something in by yourself.

Albert Hammond, Jr.