“If you’re going to try, go all the way. Otherwise don’t even start. This could mean losing girlfriends, wives, relatives, jobs. And maybe your mind. It could mean not eating for three or four days. It could mean freezing on a park bench. It could mean jail. It could mean derision. It could mean mockery, isolation. Isolation is the gift. All the others are a test of your endurance. Of how much you really want to do it. And you’ll do it, despite rejection in the worst odds. And it will be better than anything else you can imagine. If you’re going to try, go all the way. There is no other feeling like that. You will be alone with the gods. And the nights will flame with fire. You will ride life straight to perfect laughter. It’s the only good fight there is.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX6JdynMW-M
8 comments
i don’t think this is very encouraging
of the right things..*
K3T K3T K3T, have you read any Bukowski? I think the quote is very encouraging. Instead of agonizing over failures, “go all the way” and ride that pony into oblivion. That is the message. Embrace the chaos. It isn’t for everyone, which is why there was only one Bukowski.
death isn’t the point. no, i have not read any Bukowski, which seems to encourage death. i try to read the Bible as often as i can, because it encourages life, and it teaches me how to help others.
Not exactly. Bukowski lived life to the fullest. It can be seen in the quote I provided and it can be seen in all of his work. There’s nothing about encouraging death. Everyone struggles. And people deal with those struggles in their own way. According to Bukowski, the struggles are meant to be enjoyed, to the fullest. I do not see anything more inspiring in the face of struggles and tragedies.
I think the quote may help someone who is suicidal. Instead of agonizing, they might see their difficulties as an opportunity to blast through them. It’s possible.
I will leave you with another Bukowski quote, one of which dove-tails the one I already provided:
“Some people never go crazy, What truly horrible lives they must liveâ€
If we never laugh at tragedy, no one will ever have a sense of humor. Laughter is the best medicine.
oh i’m sorry. i was misunderstanding. yes, i kind of agree that people should always have courage, and that being positive when it seems unrealistic (or, ‘going crazy’) is very important.
it seemed like he was speaking of suicide when he said “If you’re going to try , go all the way.” i was thinking “If you’re going to try [to kill yourself], go all the way[, don’t take any chances].” sorry about that
Yes, that wasn’t the message there. The message being, which runs parallel to the suicidal, which is, life is hard, life sucks. Bukowski is saying “go all the way”! There’s a certain majesty in not caring. There’s a mystique in laughing at all of life’s complexities. I find it inspirational because I would be unable to live in Bukowski’s manner. I suppose I would give it a try before committing suicide, and why not?
If you want to learn more about Bukowski, “Factotum” the book is good, as is “Pulp” (a detective novel, his last novel before he died, which includes the most unbelievable ending to any book I have ever read…seriously, it gave me chills, I couldn’t believe words could ever express what he was trying to convey). Also, Mickey Rourke was Charles Bukowski in a film called “Barfly”.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092618/
Live life to it’s fullest, even when it sucks, that is the message, yes.
Loved the quote, thanks!