Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

Out of other novellas by S. Zweig I have recently read, I liked 'Twenty-four hours...' most. Here the author explores, as he always does, the complicated world of human feelings and emotions. He tries to answer the questions what the price of impulsive behaviour is, where losing one's control can lead to and if it is always possible and worth trying to help a person with an addiction. And why it is important to forgive yourself.
It is important to note that when Zweig reveals human weaknesses, he is not judgemental at all, on the countrary, he is very sympathetic and humane.

„Gratitude is a rare frame of mind; and those who are grateful can seldom find a way to express what they feel. They are overwhelmed by silence; are shamefaced; and, sometimes, actually try to hide their feelings.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„Gratitude fills us with rejoicing, for it so rarely finds frank expression; delicacy of feeling warms our hearts.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„For one who is having no personal experience, the passionate disquiet of others is at any rate a titillation of the nerves, like seeing a play or listening to music.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„To grow old means to be rid of anxieties about the past.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„Pain is a coward. He flees when faced by the irresistible power of the will-to-live, which is more strongly rooted in the flesh than the intensest passion is rooted in the spirit.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„As we grow old, we become aware that death is drawing near; his shadow falls across our path; the realities of life seem less crude than of yore, they touch our senses less intimately, and they lose much of their poignancy.�
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
„Most people have very little imagination. They are hardly moved by anything which does not directly touch them, which does not positively hammer its message upon their senses; but even a trifle, should it happen under their very eyes, and within the immediate range of their feelings, will instantly kindle in them a disproportionate amount of passion. We may say that the rarity of their interest is compensated by an inappropriate and exaggerated vehemence when their interest is at last aroused.�