Doors in the Wall

Mankind has always sought doors in the wall of reality. In The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley wrote that ‘Most men and women lead lives at the worst so painful, at the best so monotonous, poor and limited that the urge to escape, the longing to transcend themselves if only for a few moments, is and always has been one of the principal appetites of the soul.’ Whether or not Huxley is correct in this pessimistic analysis of the reasons why people need such diversions, the longing for escape remains, and the ways in which different people have sought their own doors in the wall are infinitely varied.