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Quote by Katherine Anne Porter

“It is a simple truth that the human mind can face better the most oppressive government, the most rigid restrictions, than the awful prospect of a lawless, frontierless world. Freedom is a dangerous intoxicant and very few people can tolerate it in any quantity; it brings out the old raiding, oppressing, murderous instincts; the rage for revenge, for power, the lust for bloodshed. The longing for freedom takes the form of crushing the enemy- there is always the enemy!- into the earth; and where and who is the enemy if there is no visible establishment to attack, to destroy with blood and fire? Remember all that oratory when freedom is threatened again. Freedom, remember, is not the same as liberty.”

Quote by Katherine Anne Porter

Work

The Never-Ending Wrong

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Author

Katherine Anne Porter
Katherine Anne Porter

American journalist, novelist, and essayist, known for her profound psychological portraits and unique narrative style. Porter, born in Texas, often explored the relationship between individuals and society, as well as themes of morality and religion in her works. Her notable works include 'The Ship of Fools' and 'The Gate of Heaven'. more

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“He had opened the book at random several times, seeking a sortes Virgilianae, before he chose the sentences on which his code was to be based. 'You say: I am not free. But I have lifted my hand and let it fall.' It was as if in choosing that passage, he were transmitting a signal of defiance to both the services. The last word of the message, when it was decoded by Boris or another, would read 'goodbye.”

“From the will of a freedom-fighter, Farzad Kamangar: "Is it possible to be a teacher and not show the path to the sea to the little fish of the country? Is it possible to carry the heavy burden of being a teacher and be responsible for spreading the seeds of knowledge and still be silent? Is it possible to see the lumps in the throats of the students and witness their thin and malnourished faces and keep quiet? … I cannot imagine witnessing the pain and poverty of the people of this land and fail to give our hearts to the river and the sea, to the roar and the flood.”

“الآن أقولها بالطريقة العشوائية .. العبث الممدد بين ذرات الهواء .. الرياح .. الضوء .. لوحتى الفنية بين أضواء الغروب البنفسجية .. الزرقاء .. و الصفراء.. الوردية .. أكمل هذه الرحلة .. بطيرانى .. و السحب التى ترسم أحلامى التلقائية .. قد هبط سقف الصبر عندي .. لكن الأمل بلغ العنان .. و علت دعواتى التى تردد صداها في كل الوديان”