Small empty slate chair facing a standing oval mirror

Original artwork, not a still

Samuel Johnson

Study requires solitude, and solitude is a state dangerous to those who are too much accustomed to sink into themselves.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

Studying needs time alone, Johnson says. But solitude carries a risk for people who already tend to turn inward too much. It's a balanced warning that the quiet which helps thinking can also swallow a restless mind.

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