One walks along a street and strays unknowingly from one's path; one then looks up and suddenly for those familiar landmarks of orientation, and, seeing none, one feels lost. Panic drapes the look of the world in a strangeness, and the more one stares blankly at the world, the stranger it looks, the more hideously frightening it seems. There is then born in one a wild, hot wish to project out upon the alien world the world that one is seeking. This wish is a hunger for power, to be in command of one's self. . Richard Wright
About This Quote

In a very powerful and inspiring way, this quotation by John Steinbeck symbolizes the deep need that every person has to have a sense of belonging. It is a desire that we all have to feel constant and secure in our own identity. We need to be able to look at the world around us and know exactly who we are and what we believe in. The quote speaks about our need for freedom from chaos and confusion.

For example, if you are lost in a mall, you will quickly become overwhelmed by the strange paths that lead from one place to another. In order to escape this confusion, you will want to draw a map of your surroundings in your mind. You will want to understand how these places fit into your life and how they relate to each other.

Source: The Outsider

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More Quotes By Richard Wright
  1. If you've a notion of what man's heart is, wouldn't you say that maybe the whole effort of man on earth to build a civilization is simply man's frantic and frightened attempt to hide himself from himself? That there is a part of man that...
  2. Maybe man is nothing in particular, ' Cross said gropingly. 'Maybe that's the terror of it. Man may be just anything at all. And maybe man deep down suspects this, really knows this, kind of dreams that it is true; but at the same time...
  3. If a man confessed anything on his death bed, it was the truth; for no man could stare death in the face and lie.
  4. You can't make me do nothing but die!
  5. We cannot shake off three hundred years of fear in three hours.
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