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Morris West Quotes

Novelist

Morris West, born on April 26, 1916, was an Australian novelist renowned for his profound character development and imaginative storytelling. His works, which often delve into historical, religious, and social issues, have won him a wide readership.

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All Men Art Humans Ifs Wisdom Accepting Conditions Corruption Cost Creatures

Famous Morris West Quotes

“No man - prince, peasant, pope - has all the light, who says else is a mountebank. I claim no private lien on truth, only a liberty to seek it, prove it in debate, and to be wrong a thousand times to reach a single rightness. It is that liberty they fear. They want us to be driven to God like sheep, not running to him like lovers, shouting joy!”

Men Want Light Running Joy Liberty Lovers Thousand Prove Claims Driven Debate Sheep Pope Want U Peasants Shouting Prove It

Author:Morris West

“There was no cure for the human condition because every man read the present and plotted the future in the light of his own past.”

Men Humans Light Past Conditions Every Man Cures Human Condition

Author:Morris West

“If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm, you'll never enjoy the sunshine.”

Source: Three Complete Novels

“One has to accept pain as a condition of existence. One has to court doubt and darkness as the cost of knowing. One needs a will stubborn in conflict, but apt always to the total acceptance of every consequence of living and dying.”

Life Needs Wisdom Pain Existence Accepting Darkness Knowing Doubt Conditions Dying Acceptance Cost Conflict Consequence Court Live Life Stubborn

Book:The devil's advocate ; The second victory ; Daughter of silence ; The salamander ; The shoes of the fisherman

Source: The devil's advocate ; The second victory ; Daughter of silence ; The salamander ; The shoes of the fisherman

“All institutions are prone to corruption and to the vices of their members.”

Members Institutions Vices Corruption

Author:Morris West

“Man is a creature who walks in two worlds and traces upon the walls of his cave the wonders and the nightmare experiences of his spiritual pilgrimage.”

Men World Two Spiritual Walks Wonder Wall Walking Creatures Nightmare Caves Pilgrimage Two Worlds

Book:Three Complete Novels

Source: Three Complete Novels

“You know one of the causes of modern despair is the fact that we have had proposed to us, from various quarters, an impossible perfection.”

Knows Art Facts Wisdom Causes Impossible Modern Despair Perfection Various Quarters

Author:Morris West

“And I've always worked on the principle that if it interests me enough to write about it, then it must interest a lot of other people.”

People Ifs Writing Art Enough Wisdom Interest Principles

Author:Morris West

“In a longish life as a professional writer, I have heard a thousand masterpieces talked out over bars, restaurant tables and love seats. I have never seen one of them in print. Books must be written, not talked.”

Writing Book Written Heard Thousand And Love Tables Bars Restaurants Seats Print Masterpiece Print Books

Author:Morris West

“The fact is that the learning process goes on, and so long as the voices are not stilled and the singers go on singing some of it gets through.”

Long Art Facts Process Voice Goes On Singing Singers Learning Process

Author:Morris West

“If God be God and man a creature made in image of the divine intelligence, his noblest function is the search for truth.”

Ifs Men Made Truth Divine Creatures Function Search For Truth

Author:Morris West

“None of us is guaranteed against failure or corruption of any kind; witness what's going on in the world in this moment, the follies of human nature and the failures of human nature.”

World Humans Kind Moments Nature Human Nature Corruption Witness Folly

Author:Morris West

“It costs so much to be a full human being that there are very few who have the Love and the courage to pay the price. One has to abandon altogether the search for security and reach out to the risks of living with both arms. One has to embrace life.”

Humans Human Beings Pay Risk Security Arms Cost Embrace Abandon Reach Out Pay The Price Embrace Life

Author:Morris West

“I look out this window and think this is a cosmos, this is a huge creation, this is one small corner of it. The trees and the birds and everything else and I am part of it. I didn't ask to be put here. I've been lucky finding myself here.”

Thinking Looks Asks Nature Tree Creation Huge Lucky Findings Bird Window Corners Cosmos Finding Myself

Author:Morris West

“There are still things I want to do but they're not necessary for me to do. I'm not clinging to anything that I can't open my hands and let go.”

Want Stills I Can Hands Letting Go Clinging

Author:Morris West

“Once you accept the existence of God - however you define him, however you explain your relationship to him - then you are caught forever with his presence in the center of all things.”

Existence Accepting Forever Relationship All Things Caught Our Relationship Existence Of God

Book:Three Complete Novels

Source: Three Complete Novels

“He had fallen into the error of all liberals: the belief that men are prepared to reform themselves, that good will attracts good will, that truth has leavening virtue of its own.”

Men Belief Virtue Errors Prepared Reform Fallen Good Will

Book:The devil's advocate ; The second victory ; Daughter of silence ; The salamander ; The shoes of the fisherman

Source: The devil's advocate ; The second victory ; Daughter of silence ; The salamander ; The shoes of the fisherman

“Well I travelled quite a lot in the east, and one of the things that impressed me greatly was the buddhist notion of the continuity of things, the wheel of life which is what we're talking about, the ever turning wheel.”

Wells Talking Notion East Buddhist Wheels Impressed Continuity Wheel Of Life Continuity Of Life

Author:Morris West

About the Author

Born: April 26, 1916
Died: October 9, 1999
Known for: Novelist
Quotes: 18

Books & Sources

Three Complete NovelsRelated source material

The devil's advocate ; The second victory ; Daughter of silence ; The salamander ; The shoes of the fishermanRelated source material

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