Poul Anderson Quotes

1926–2001 United States

Poul William Anderson (November 25, 1926 – July 31, 2001) was a prominent American science fiction author who wrote during a Golden Age of the genre. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy.

United States
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Right-libertarians
Science fiction authors

Random Poul Anderson quote

144 quotes

You should pay no heed to what some yokel priest has prated of. What does he know?

The Broken Sword (1954)

Like sensible people throughout history, the average Phoenician wanted as little to do with his government as possible.

“I think,” said John, “you’d do well to remember what one of our philosophers wrote. All evil is a good become cancerous.

The Corridors of Time (1965)

I was not speaking of minor ripples in the mainstream of history—certainly those are ruled by chance. But the broad current moves quite inexorably, I assure you.

I’m still spry, but I feel the teeth gnawing, and believe me, my friends, it was better to be young.

Holger wished he had read the old tales more closely; he had only a dim childhood recollection of them.

Three Hearts and Three Lions (1961)

Her rank was higher than his, so high that no one in her family worked productively.

The Enemy Stars (1959)

Time went on, relentlessly, and one by one the proud works of man were lost.

Be calm. A man can do but little. Enough if that little be right.

There Will Be Time (1972)

You can’t be a telepath and remain any kind of prude. People’s lives were their own business, if they didn’t hurt anyone else too badly.

The Book of Poul Anderson (1975)

We live with our archetypes, but can we live in them?

Anderson demonstrates that if one accepts a sham mystery as real, one has stopped or strayed in the search for truth, and truth has survival value.

The Book of Poul Anderson (1975)

His will grew tight again. This was no age for weaklings. You had to do whatever seemed best, without letting gods or men or the lower devils deter you.

Vault of the Ages (1952)

It sounds rather silly, doesn’t it? One little man thinking he can change history all by his lonesome. A lot of trouble has been caused by that delusion.

The Long Way Home (1955)

One man, one vote: A legal doctrine requiring that, from time to time, old gerrymanders be replaced with new ones. The object of this is the achievement of genuine democracy.

There Will Be Time (1972)

Life isn’t a fairy tale; the knight who kills the dragon doesn’t necessarily get the princess. So what? Who’d want to live in a cosmos less rich and various than the real one?

The Star Fox (1965)

Keep on thinking. Keep your thinking close to the ground, where it belongs. Don’t ever trade your liberty for another man’s offer to do your thinking and make your mistakes for you.

Brain Wave (1954)

I am a peaceful man, captain. I rely more on my cerebral cortex than my guns.

The Long Way Home (1955)

Say on. If you are a rogue, you are at least an interesting one.

I also know you cannot pick and choose. Change is a medicine bundle. You must refuse it altogether, or take the whole thing.

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Poul Anderson (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.