J. Agee, trans. (1989), p. 74
“
“He is a lesser figure than X”—how it pleases an Englishman to say that! Never suspecting what basement that would put him in, a wood louse.
— Elias Canetti
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "“He is a lesser figure than X”—how it pleases an Englishman to say that! Never suspecting what basement that would put him in, a wood louse." in the context of "J. Agee, trans. (1989), p. 74" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Elias Canetti" (Quotes, Das Geheimherz der Uhr [The Secret Heart of the Clock] (1987))
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
About Elias Canetti
Elias Canetti (25 July 1905 – 14 August 1994) was a Bulgarian modernist novelist, playwright, memoirist, and non-fiction writer. He wrote in German and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1981.
About Elias Canetti
Elias Canetti (25 July 1905 – 14 August 1994) was a Bulgarian modernist novelist, playwright, memoirist, and non-fiction writer. He wrote in German and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1981.
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