"Old Man in New World" is a short story by Olaf Stapledon, published as a separate volume by George Allen and Unwin in 1944. It was published through PEN, the international writers' association.
The story is set some time in the 1960s, and tells of the world that has been rebuilt from the devastation of the Second World War, as seen through the eyes of an old revolutionary. The "Old Man" is invited to London to see "The Procession of The Peoples", an event celebrating the new order and the triumph of the human spirit.
In witnessing this event, however, the Old Man sees nothing but the seeds of the very things he, in his youth, fought against — falsehood, political will and religiosity.
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Famous quotes containing the words old man, man and/or world:
“I love everything that’s old: old friends, old times, old manners, old books, old wines; and, I believe, Dorothy, you’ll own I have been pretty fond of an old wife.”
—Oliver Goldsmith (1728–1774)
“When man works hard, the land is not lazy.”
—Chinese proverb.
“And sometimes I remember days of old
When fellowship seemed not so far to seek,
And all the world and I seemed much less cold,
And at the rainbow’s foot lay surely gold,
And hope felt strong, and life itself not weak.”
—Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830–1894)