Castle in the air

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Spanish castle in the air in a British caricature 1740

A castle in the air is an idea or a plan of something that one longs for, wished for or dreamed of, but which is not realistic when reasonably viewed. Analogous terms are, for example, a pipe dream , cloud cuckoo land or fantasy .

In common parlance we speak of “building a castle in the air”. It was created in the 16th century according to the saying “ lock up in the air ”, which means something like: sit in the attic and dream .

The term castle in the air is also used in literature and architecture . Examples are:

Quotes

  • Jerome Lawrence, US writer: A neurotic is a person who builds a castle in the air. A psychotic is the person who lives in it. And a psychiatrist is the one who collects the rent.
  • In the operetta Frau Luna leaves Paul Lincke sing locks that are in the moon, bring sorrow, darling , where the lack of realism is brought castles in the air advantage.

Web links

Wiktionary: Castle in the air  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. Sebastian Franck : Proverbs, Beauty, Wise Klugredenn. Inside German and other languages ​​politeness, ornamentation, the highest level of reason and cleverness, [...] felt and understood, used and described by old and present, brought together in several thousand. Egenolf Erben, Frankfurt (1555)