Wanting the impossible
Meaning
To desire or seek something that is utterly unattainable or cannot be achieved.
Origin
Since the dawn of human reason, our species has grappled with the tantalizing allure of the unattainable. Storytellers spun tales of Icarus soaring too high or Tantalus forever reaching for water that receded. Philosophers pondered the very limits of possibility. This phrase, 'wanting the impossible,' isn't some quirky idiom from a forgotten trade; instead, it’s a direct, unvarnished articulation of a truth as old as consciousness itself. It captures that quintessential human impulse: the yearning for what logic dictates cannot be, the defiant dream against the stone wall of reality. It's the whisper of every heart that has ever wished for a star, knowing full well it can't be grasped.
Examples
- He spent years trying to invent a perpetual motion machine, constantly wanting the impossible.
- Her dream of flying without any equipment was a classic case of wanting the impossible.