"I shall go further and say that even if an examination of the past could lead to any valid prediction concerning man's future, that prediction would be the contrary of reassuring"

Julien Benda's quote recommends that even if we were able to properly anticipate the future based on our understanding of the past, the results would not be soothing. He suggests that the future is unforeseeable which we should not depend on the past to guide us. This quote speaks to the idea that the future is uncertain and that we ought to not be too positive in our forecasts. It also recommends that we should be open to originalities and possibilities, rather than depending on the past to identify our future. Benda's quote encourages us to be flexible and to be prepared for the unanticipated. Eventually, it serves as a suggestion that the future is unforeseeable which we should not be too confident in our forecasts.