“The barns were burning fast and easy. So were the hayricks and the thatched roofs of cottages. As they were leaving the village, people looked back to see whose cottage was already on fire and whose not yet. This had happened many times before, all through the long history of these villages. But their incorrigible, overconfident inhabitants, blinded by their habits and nature, which led them each time anew to believe in the durability of their works and possessions, seemed completely taken aback, as if this was happening for the first time.”
