Can we move no more?

As I was reading through "Between Past and Future" one statement stuck out to me. It was one that I've heard many times before, but for so odd reason I couldn't stop thinking about it: "There is nothing in this situation that is altogether new. We are only too familiar with the recurring outbursts of passionate exasperation with reason, thought, and rational discourse..." This statement to me seems to be a big let down; there is nothing else for me to create because someone probably already thought of it. Then, I thought it would be interesting to know all of the "firsts" in the world, because there had to be one. Now, since every idea or theme has already been thought of, how long has the modern world been stuck in this rut of recurring themes? No one will ever know.