Best Written Quotes | Short & Famous Sayings Page 9

“A dead language is not only one no longer spoken or written, it is unyielding language content to admire its own paralysis. Like statist language, censored and censoring. Ruthless in its policing duties, it has no desire or purpose other than maintaining the free range of its own narcotic narcissism, its own exclusivity and dominance. However moribund, it is not without effect for it actively thwarts the intellect, stalls conscience, suppresses human potential. Unreceptive to interrogation, it cannot form or tolerate new ideas, shape other thoughts, tell another story, fill baffling silences.”

“Every word written is a net to catch the word that has escaped.”

Writing Written

Author:Jeanette Winterson

“This was 1990, the year that communism died in Europe and it seemed strange to me that in all the words that were written about the fall of the iron curtain, nobody anywhere lamented that it was the end of a noble experiment. I know that communism never worked and I would have disliked living under it myself but none the less it seems that there was a kind of sadness in the thought that the only economic system that appeared to work was one based on self interest and greed.”

Knows Years Kind Ends Self Seems Fall Interest Written Sadness Economic Strange Europe Died Greed Noble Experiments Communism Iron Curtains Self Interest Economic Systems Iron Curtain

Author:Bill Bryson

“An illustrator in my own mind - and this is not a truth of any kind - is someone who so falls in love with writing that he wishes he had written it, and the closest he can get to is illustrating it. And the next thing you learn, you have to find something unique in this book, which perhaps even the author was not entirely aware of. And that's what you hold on to, and that's what you add to the pictures: a whole Other Story that you believe in, that you think is there.”

Thinking Writing Mind Believe Kind Book Whole Stories Fall Next Wish My Own Written Unique Add Falling In Love Closest Illustrators Illustrating

Author:Maurice Sendak

“I write poems, have always written them, to transcend the painfully personal and reach the universal.”

Writing Written Universal

Author:May Sarton

“Passing away" is written on the world and all the world contains.”

World Death Written Passing Passings Passing Away

Author:Felicia Hemans

“O Death, the Consecrator! Nothing so sanctifies a name As to be written--Dead. Nothing so wins a life from blame, So covers it from wrath and shame, As doth the burial-bed.”

Death Winning Names Written Bed Shame Blame Wrath Burial Sanctify

Author:Herman Melville

“I like my films to have a certain amount of realism - something that's thought provoking and intelligently written. More than the amount on the pay cheque, I look for a level of respectability as an actor.”

Looks Film Certain Actors Levels Pay Written Amount Thought Provoking Realism Provoking Respectability Cheques

Author:Arjun Rampal

“If I had written King Lear, I would regret it all my life afterwards. Because that work is so big, that its defects show as huge, its monstrous defects, things even minimal in between some scenes and their possible perfection. It's not the sun with spots; it's a broken greek statue.”

Ifs Shows Bigs Sun Written Regret Huge Broken Kings Scene Perfection Spots Greek Defects Statues Monstrous Lear

Author:Fernando Pessoa

“I discovered that I had, in the past two decades, written a far greater amount in the essay form than I remembered. Certainly I have written enough of it to demonstrate that I harbor no disdain for literary journalism or just plain journalism, under whose sponsorship I have been able to express much that has fascinated me, or alarmed me, or amused me, or otherwise engaged my attention when I was not writing a book.”

Source: This Quiet Dust and Other Writings

“We cannot live in peace without Law. And though law cannot be perfect, it may be just if it is written in ignorance of the identity of the claimants and applied equally to all. Then it is a possession not only of the claimants but of the society, which may now base its actions upon a reasonable assumption of the law?s treatment.”

Ifs May Action Law Perfect Written Identity Ignorance Possession Assumption Reasonable Treatment

Book:The Secret Knowledge: On the Dismantling of American Culture

Source: The Secret Knowledge: On the Dismantling of American Culture

“It is of the nature of idea to be communicated: written, spoken, done. The idea is like grass. It craves light, likes crowds, thrives on crossbreeding, grows better for being stepped on.”

Ideas Done Light Grows Written Crowds Likes Grass Thrive Crave

Book:The Dispossessed

Source: The Dispossessed

“When people cannot write good literature it is perhaps natural that they should lay down rules how good literature should be written.”

People Should Writing Literature Natural Written Lays Good Literature

Book:A Last Vintage: Essays and Papers

Source: A Last Vintage: Essays and Papers

“We shall not busy ourselves with what men ought to have admired, what they ought to have written, what they ought to have thought, but with what they did think, write, admire.”

Thinking Men Writing Written Ought Busy Admire

Author:George Saintsbury

“Criticism is the endeavour to find, to know, to love, to recommend, not only the best, but all the good, that has been known and thought and written in the world.”

Knows World Has Beens Known Written Criticism Endeavour

Book:History Of English Criticism

Source: History Of English Criticism

“Well, my father Kingsley Amis was a writer and it seemed natural to start writing in my late teens. I think it was good that I began when I was young and bold and foolish, otherwise I'd have become too self-conscious and aware of the weight of not having written anything yet.”

Thinking Writing Wells Self Young Father Natural Written Late Conscious Weight Foolish Teens Self Conscious

Author:Martin Amis

“So we have a choice to make. We can once again let Washington's bad habits stand in the way of progress. Or we can pull together and say that in America, our destiny isn't written for us but by us. We can place good ideas ahead of old ideological battles, and a sense of purpose above the same narrow partisanship. We can act boldly to turn crisis into opportunity and, together, write the next great chapter in our history and meet the test of our time.”

“Fate's sentence written on the brow no hand can e'er efface.”

Hands Fate Written Sentences Brows

Author:Bhartrhari

“Kafka could never have written as he did had he lived in a house. His writing is that of someone whose whole life was spent in apartments, with lifts, stairwells, muffled voices behind closed doors, and sounds through walls. Put him in a nice detached villa and he'd never have written a word.”

Writing Whole House Sound Voice Behinds Nice Written Doors Wall Whole Life Lifts Apartment Detached Closed Doors Behind Closed Doors Villa

Book:Writing Home

Source: Writing Home

“It is no small comfort that God hath written some Scriptures to you which He hath not to others. Read these, and think God is like a friend who sendeth a letter to a whole house and family, but who speaketh in His letter to some by name that are dearest to Him in the house.”

Thinking Whole House Names Written Comfort Letters Scripture

Book:Letters of Samuel Rutherford: With a Sketch of His Life

Source: Letters of Samuel Rutherford: With a Sketch of His Life

“It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism & Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen & Dunsany & others, rather than through the Bierce-Chambers line, that I picked up my gradually developing hash of theogony - or daimonogony. Come to think of it, I guess I sling this stuff more as Chambers does than as Machen & Dunsany do - though I had written a good deal of it before I ever suspected that Chambers ever wrote a weird story!”

Thinking Doe Ideas Stories Stuff Lines Deals Written Mines Mythology Developing Chamber Bad Ideas Hash

Author:H. P. Lovecraft

“Language does not leave fossils, at least not until it has become written.”

Doe Language Written Fossils

Author:Richard Brautigan

“My favorite process is writing, from day one. The songs I have written throughout the years were a real great opportunity for me to communicate, because I think tha'ts my prime objective on this planet.”

Thinking Writing Years Real Song Opportunity Process Written Planets My Favorite Communicate Objectives Prime Great Opportunity

Author:Gloria Estefan

“If anybody asks me what I have accomplished, I will say all I have accomplished is that I have written a few good sentences.”

Ifs Asks Written Sentences Ask Me Accomplished

Author:Eric Hoffer

“With films, I just scribble a couple of notes for a scene. You don't have to do any writing at all, you just have your notes for the scene, which are written with the actors and the camera in mind. The actual script is a necessity for casting and budgeting, but the end product often doesn't bear much resemblance to the script--at least in my case.”

Writing Mind Ends Film Actors Cases Written Products Bears Couple Scene Cameras Notes Scripts Casting Resemblance Scribbles Budgeting

Author:Woody Allen

“Low comedies are written for the drawing-room, the kitchen and the stable, and if you cut out the kitchen and the stable the drawing-room can't support the play by itself.”

Ifs Play Rooms Support Comedy Cutting Written Lows Drawing Kitchen Stable

Book:Mark Twain’s Letters & Speeches (Annotated Edition)

Source: Mark Twain’s Letters & Speeches (Annotated Edition)

“Before one is successful that is before any one is ready to pay money for anything you do then you are certain that every word you have written is an important word to have written and that any word you have written is as important as any other word and you keep everything you have written with great care.”

Important Care Certain Pay Successful Written Ready Important Words

Book:Everybody's Autobiography

Source: Everybody's Autobiography

“After you have written a thing and you reread it, there is always the temptation to fix it up, to improve it, to remove its poison, blunt its sting.”

Writing Written Temptation Poison Remove Blunt

Author:Jean Cocteau

“I gather a repulsive nobody writing in a paper no one of any decency would be seen dead with has written something loathesome and inhumane.”

Writing Would Be Written Paper Decency Inhumane

Author:Stephen Fry

“I do not think I ever opened a book in my life which had not something to say upon woman's inconstancy. Songs and proverbs, all talk of woman's fickleness. But perhaps you will say, these were all written by men.”

Thinking Men Book Song Written Inconstancy

Book:Making Sense of Persuasion! a Students Guide to Austen's (Includes Study Guide, Biography, and Modern Retelling)

Source: Making Sense of Persuasion! a Students Guide to Austen's (Includes Study Guide, Biography, and Modern Retelling)

“For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous. In fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts.”

Knows Way Writing Firsts I Can Facts Written

Book:Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

Source: Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life

“Occasionally if I look back at something I've written I'll find one of those that I don't understand, but that's a bad thing - the unconscious has dealt me a bad hand.”

Ifs Looks Hands Written Unconscious Bad Things

Author:William Gibson

“Only those things are beautiful which are inspired by madness and written by reason.”

Love Writing Reason Beautiful Written Madness Inspired Cute Madness And Sanity

Author:Andre Gide

“What another would have done as well as you, do not do it. What another would have said as well as you, do not say it; what another would have written as well, do not write it. Be faithful to that which exists nowhere but in yourself - and thus make yourself indispensable.”

Writing Wells Said Done Change Written Faithful Being Yourself Collaboration Indispensable Social Change Being Faithful Just Being You

Author:Andre Gide

“My work consists of two parts: of the one which is here, and of everything which I have not written. And precisely this second part is the important one.”

Two Important Written

Author:Ludwig Wittgenstein

“A proposition is completely logically analyzed if its grammar is made completely clear: no matter what idiom it may be written or expressed in.”

Ifs May Made Matter Clear Written No Matter What Propositions Grammar Idiom

Book:Philosophical remarks

Source: Philosophical remarks

“The most beautiful things are those that madness prompts and reason writes.”

“I have something to say about the difference between American and European cities, but I forgot what it was. I have it written down at home somewhere.”

Home Differences Cities Written

Author:David Byrne

“In the end all books are written for your friends. The problem after writing One Hundred Years of Solitude was that now I no longer know whom of the millions of readers I am writing for; this upsets and inhibits me. It's like a million eyes are looking at you and you don't really know what they think.”

Thinking Knows Writing Years Book Ends Problem Eye Millions Written Reader Solitude Hundred Upset One Hundred Years Of Solitude

Author:Gabriel Garcia Marquez

“All men even, I have written, Jesus Christ began as flecks of tissue inside a woman's womb. Every boy must stagger out of the shadow of a mother goddess, whom he never fully escapes.”

Men Mother Jesus Christ Boys Written Shadow Jesus Christ Goddess Womb Tissues

Author:Camille Paglia

“Frankly, reviews aremostly for peoplewho still read.Like most of the written word, it isgoing the way of the dinosaur.”

Way Stills Written Reviews Dinosaurs Written Word

Author:Bruce Willis

“The kingdoms represented by the second and third Beasts, or the Bear and Leopard, are again described by Daniel in his last Prophecy written in the third year of Cyrus over Babylon , the year in which he conquered Persia. For this Prophecy is a commentary upon the Vision of the Ram and He-Goat.”

Years Lasts Vision Written Bears Thirds Kingdoms Beast Prophecy Goats Commentary Leopards Rams Babylon Persia

Book:Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel, and the Apocalypse of St. John

Source: Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel, and the Apocalypse of St. John

“I don't think I've ever written about me. I'm not a character in any of my plays, except that boy, that silent boy that turns up in Three Tall Women.”

Thinking Play Character Turns Three Boys Written Silent Tall Tall Women

Book:Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

Source: Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

“In this world laws are written for the lofty aim of "the common good" and then acted out in life on the basis of the common greed. In this world irrationality clings to man like his shadow so that the right things get done for the wrong reasons - afterwards, we dredge up the right reasons for justification. It is a world not of angels but of angles, where men speak of moral principles but act on power principles; a world where we are always moral and our enemies always immoral; a world where "reconciliation" means that when one side gets the power and the other side gets reconciled to it.”

“The Prince was written by Machiavelli for the Haves on how to hold power. Rules for Radicals is written for the Have-Nots on how to take it away. In this book we are concerned with how to create mass organizations to seize power and give it to the people; to realize the democratic dream of equality, justice, peace, cooperation, equal and full opportunities for education, full and useful employment, health, and the creation of those circumstances in which man can have the chance to live by values that give meaning to life.”

Source: Rules for Radicals: A Pragmatic Primer for Realistic Radicals

“One of the questions on which clarity of thinking is now most necessary is that of the relation between the methods of science and of Marxist philosophy. Although much has already been written on the subject, yet there is still an enormous amount of confusion and contradictory statement.”

Thinking Stills Philosophy Written Subjects Amount Relation Method Enormous Statements Confusion Clarity Contradictory Marxist

Author:John Desmond Bernal

“Courts are places where the ending is written first and all that precedes is simply vaudeville.”

Firsts Law Written Court Vaudeville

Book:Notes of a Dirty Old Man

Source: Notes of a Dirty Old Man

“Most of the people dishing out judgment have no working experience of the theatre, have not written a professional play, a sketch, or even a joke; have never worked in a theatre, taken an acting class, or published any extended piece of work. They are creative virgins; everything they know about theatre is book-learned and second-hand.”

People Knows Book Play Hands Acting Class Creative Taken Pieces Written Judgment Jokes Theatre Virgins Second Hand Acting Classes

Author:John Lahr

“What is or is not the jargon is determined by whether the word is written in an intonation which places it transcendently in opposition to its own meaning; by whether the individual words are loaded at the expense of the sentence, its propositional force, and the thought content.”

Individual Force Written Determined Sentences Opposition Expenses Loaded Jargon Intonation

Book:Adorno

Source: Adorno

“The true life is not reducible to words spoken or written, not by anyone, ever. The true life takes place when we're alone, thinking, feeling, lost in memory, dreamingly self-aware, the submicroscopic moments.”

Thinking Life Self Moments Feelings Life Is Lost Memories Written True Life Feeling Lost

Book:Point Omega

Source: Point Omega

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