‘More simply, ruin is part of the general Weltschmerz, Sehnsucht, malaise, nostalgia, angst, frustration, sickness, passion of the human soul; it is the eternal symbol. Literature and art have always carried it; it has had as a fashion its ups and downs, but the constant mood and appetite is there.’

Rose Macaulay, Pleasures of Ruin

‘Am I wrong, or are fewer and fewer people using the word Weltschmerz these days?’

Christopher Howell, The Ruins of Pleasure