The destruction of the Library at Alexandria, scene from Agora (directed by Alejandro Amenábar)

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Recapitulate the history of ideas, acts, attitudes and you will find that the future was always on the side of the rabble.  One does not preach in the name of Marcus Aurelius: since he spoke only to himself, he had neither disciples nor votaries; on the other hand, temples are still being built where certain Epistles are cited to satiety… 

E.M. Cioran, The Temptation to Exist