Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by E. L. Doctorow

Quote by E. L. Doctorow

Work

Homer & Langley: A Novel

Homer & Langley is a fictional narrative that delves into the lives of two brothers, Homer and Langley Collyer, who are reclusive and eccentric. Set in New York City, the story unfolds against the backdrop of the early 20th century, offering a glimpse into the brothers' secluded existence and the impact of their isolation on their lives. more

Author

E. L. Doctorow
E. L. Doctorow

E. L. Doctorow was an American author renowned for his historical novels. His works often use the backdrop of American history to delve into the complexities of human nature. Born on January 6, 1931, Doctorow passed away on July 21, 2015. more

You May Also Like

“[Y]our agricultural revolution is not an event like the Trojan War, isolated in the distant past and without relevance to your lives today. The work begun by those neolithic farmers in the Near East has been carried forward from one generation to the next without a single break, right into the present moment. It's the foundation of your vast civilization today in exactly the same way that it was the foundation of the very first farming village.”

“But the thing about remembering is that you don't forget. You take your material where you find it, which is in your life, at the intersection of past and present. The memory-traffic feeds into a rotary up on your head, where it goes in circles for a while, then pretty soon imagination flows in and the traffic merges and shoots off down a thousand different streets. As a writer, all you can do is pick a street and go for the ride, putting things down as they come at you. That's the real obsession. All those stories.”

“1. Organize before they rise! 2. They feel no fear, why should you? 3. Use your head: cut off theirs. 4. Blades don't need reloading. 5. Ideal protection = tight clothes, short hair. 6. Get up the staircase, then destroy it. 7. Get out of the car, get onto the bike. 8. Keep moving, keep low, keep quiet, keep alert! 9. No place is safe, only safer. 10. The zombie may be gone, but the threat lives on.”

“The investigation of the truth is in one way hard, in another easy. An indication of this is found in the fact that no one is able to attain the truth adequately, while, on the other hand, no one fails entirely, but everyone says something true about the nature of all things, and while individually they contribute little or nothing to the truth, by the union of all a considerable amount is amassed.”