quote · Legacy record
I believe, said Austerlitz, they know they have lost their way, since if you do not put them out again carefully they will stay where they are, never moving, until the last bath is out of their bodies, and indeed they will remain in the place where they came to grief even after death, held fast by the tiny claws that stiffened in their last agony,until a draft of air detaches them and blows them into a dusty corner.
I believe, said Austerlitz, they know they have lost their way, since if you do not put them out again carefully they will stay where they are, never moving, until the last bath is out of their bodies, and indeed they will remain in the place where they came to grief even after death, held fast by the tiny claws that stiffened in their last agony,until a draft of air detaches them and blows them into a dusty corner.
Approximate author period: c. 1972 AD · modern
Meaning not yet available
An individual explanation has not yet been added. We do not substitute a generic description for an interpretation of these particular words.
Begin with source-checked readings and explanations ↗Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- W.G. Sebald
Attribution: attributed - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Approximate author period: c. 1972 AD · modern
Approximate historical context for attribution to W.G. Sebald, based on documented life years 1944 to 2001; lifetime midpoint used only for grouping. The archive's creator biography identifies Winfried Georg Sebald, known as W.G. Sebald, and records his life years as 1944-2001. The midpoint is only a timeline grouping point. Source: University of East Anglia Archives: W.G. Sebald Collection, https://archivecollections.uea.ac.uk/wgs (checked 2026-10-09). This does not establish the composition date or authenticate the attribution of these words. Source: https://archivecollections.uea.ac.uk/wgs (accessed 2026-10-09).
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided quotation collection
Supplied reference C; CSV row 184933; supplied attribution, independently unverified
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.