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Iain Pears

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Novelist

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Famous Iain Pears Quotes

“Odd, don't you think? I have seen war, and invasions and riots. I have heard of massacres and brutalities beyond imagining, and I have kept my faith in the power of civilization to bring men back from the brink. And yet one women writes a letter, and my whole world falls to pieces. You see, she is an ordinary woman. A good one, even. That's the point ... Nothing [a recognizably bad person does] can surprise or shock me, or worry me. But she denounced Julia and sent her to her death because she resented her, and because Julia is a Jew. I thought in this simple contrast between the civilized and the barbaric, but I was wrong. It is the civilized who are the truly barbaric, and the [Nazi] Germans are merely the supreme expression of it.”

WarEvilCivilizationGoodResentmentWwiiBarbarismJewsNazisPettinessOrdinarinessDenunciation
Book:The Dream of Scipio
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“Politics bores you?" Bronsen said. Julien smiled. "It does. Apologies, sir, and it is not that I haven't tried to be fascinated. But careful and meticulous research has suggested the hypothesis that all politicians are liars, fools, and tricksters, and I have as yet come across no evidence to the contrary. They can do great damage, and rarely any good. It is the job of the sensible man to try and protect civilization from their depradations.”

PoliticsCivilizationLiesDamageDeceitPoliticiansScholarshipDepradation
Book:The Dream of Scipio
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“[Pope] Clement waved his hands in irritation as if to dismiss the very idea. "The world is crumbling into ruin. Armies are marching. Men and women are dying everywhere, in huge numbers. Fields are abandoned and towns deserted. The wrath of the Lord is upon us and He may be intending to destroy the whole of creation. People are without leaders and direction. They want to be given a reason for this, so they can be reassured, so they will return to their prayers and their obiediences. All this is going on, and you are concerned about the safety of two Jews?”

MankindCivilizationChaosPunishmentGenocidePanicDecayPopeEnd Of The WorldPlagueTurmoilVictimsJewsVictimizationRuinScapegoatsGod S WrathPapal Authority
Book:The Dream of Scipio
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“But what's the point of freedom? Do you think you can change anything?' 'Of course not. We are waiting.' 'For what?' 'Until the world changes on it's own. That is the one truth of history. Everything ends. Civilisations, empires, however powerful and strong. They all end, sooner or later. When it does, we will be there, with all the old ideas and thoughts, preserved and ready to blossom.”

ChangeHistoryCivilizationDystopiaEnd Of CivilizationPreservation Of Knowledge
Book:Arcadia
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“When all this is over, people will try to blame the Germans alone, and the Germans will try to blame the Nazis alone, and the Nazis will try to blame Hitler alone. They will make him bear the sins of the world. But it's not true. You suspected what was happening, and so did I. It was already too late over a year ago. I caused a reporter to lose his job because you told me to. He was deported. The day I did that I made my little contribution to civilization, the only one that matters.”

PeopleWorldTryingYearsLittlesMadeMatterJobsLosesSinBearsCivilizationLateHappeningsYears AgoBlameContributionToo LateReportersNaziTrue YouWillful Ignorance
Book:Dream of Scipio
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