59 quotes
Does it not seem to you, Justice Joyce, that this series of statistics might well occur without the intervention of any Divine Will whatsoever?
The Unexpected Dimension (1960)
There has to be an end somewhere, he thought. Each thing has to end, or there will never be any room for beginnings.
The Unexpected Dimension (1960)
Wasn’t being a dilettante the result of an inner conviction that you were too good for routine living?
The Unexpected Dimension (1960)
I understood, even then, that without question the best way to understand these people was to understand their infatuation with cars.
Hard Landing (1993)
I don’t know...but then, if God had intended Man to think, He would have given him brains, I suppose.
Michaelmas (1977)
Well, I suppose we have to have young intellectuals, if we’re ever to survive to be middle-aged philosophers.
Some Will Not Die (1961)
Tomorrow would be better. Tomorrow was always better, for someone. The difficult task lay in ensuring that the someone was one of yours.
Some Will Not Die (1961)
“Smart isn’t ‘Can you do it, is it good to do?’ Smart is ‘Can you make ’em believe what you’re doing is real?’ And real is ‘Can you get financing for it?’”
Michaelmas (1977)
I wonder if time-traveling cultures are playing with us. I wonder if they process our history for entertainment values.
Michaelmas (1977)
“I—ah—have some idea.”
“You argue?”
“I propose.”
“Marriage?”
“No. Another form of dialectical antagonism.”
Michaelmas (1977)
“I hate acting on probability.”
“You go to your church and I’ll go to mine.”
Michaelmas (1977)
And, in Cot’s mind as in that of every other human being, what had been a twinging secret shame was disastrous and disgusting as a public horror.
Some Will Not Die (1961)
Williamson threw his hands carefully up to heaven and snorted again. Apparently, everything Fay said served to confirm some judgment of mankind on his part.
The Unexpected Dimension (1960)
There’s a certain step-by-step logic, inherent in human nature and the peculiarities of human psychology, which ensures that Man will always organize into the largest possible group. Civilization is inevitable, if you want a pat phrase.
Some Will Not Die (1961)
Nobody liked him. Nobody loved him—and this bothered him. But everyone kowtowed to him, and that, it seems, was what he held most precious.
Hard Landing (1993)
That was the way things worked out: you got a certain fair share of good breaks from life, and you had no right to expect things your way every time.
Who? (1958)
There are the people in this world who act, and the people who scheme. The ones who act get things done, and the ones who scheme try to take credit for it. You must know that as well as I do.
Rogue Moon (1960)
You know, even more than playing chess, I dislike dealing with self-righteous chess players.
Michaelmas (1977)
“I’m not frightened.
”“None of us are ever frightened. Now and then, we’d just like more time to plan our responses.”
Michaelmas (1977)
That was a classic maniacal farrago, and it boils down to his not being able to understand the world. It wasn’t necessary to count the contradictions after the first one.
Michaelmas (1977)