Robert A. Heinlein Quotes

1907–1988 United States

Robert Anson Heinlein (7 July 1907 – 8 May 1988) was one of the most popular, influential, and controversial authors of science fiction of the 20th Century.

United States
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Also known as: Heinlein, Heinlein, Robert A., Robert A Heinlein, Robert Anson Heinlein, Robert Heinlein, Friday (novel)

Random Robert A. Heinlein quote

491 quotes

I hadn’t learned much in high school; I had majored in girls.

The Number of the Beast (1980)

I decided not to cross any bridges I had burned behind me.

Time for the Stars (1956)

“Why do you like to play chess so well?”
“Because it is the only thing in the world where I can see all the factors and understand all the rules.”

Off the Main Sequence (2005)

Time is never a problem on the God level. Or space.

Job: A Comedy of Justice (1984)

There was so much to grok, so little to grok from.

Stranger in a Strange Land (1961)

We have everything for a still; I stocked the items to build one if a war came along—not just for us but because liquor is money in any primitive society.

Farnham's Freehold (1964)

""Good stories are rarely true."

Tunnel in the Sky (1955)

A rational anarchist believes that concepts, such as "state" and "society" and "government" have no existence save as physically exemplified in the acts of self-responsible individuals.

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (1966)

Stop fidgeting, Mr. Randall! I know this is difficult for your little mind, but for once you really must think about something longer than your nose and wider than your mouth believe me!

The Fantasies of Robert A. Heinlein (1999)

To be sure, some humans were always doing silly things—but at what point had prime damfoolishness become commonplace? When for example, had the zombie-like professional models become accepted ideals of American womanhood?

Off the Main Sequence (2005)

Oh, we get along. She lets me have my own way, and later I find out I’ve done just what she wanted me to do.

Beyond This Horizon (1948)

Many short-sighted fools think that going to the Moon was just a stunt.

The Pragmatics of Patriotism (1973)

Selfishness is the bedrock on which all moral behavior starts and it can be immoral only when it conflicts with a higher moral imperative.

The Pragmatics of Patriotism (1973)

I do not think anyone can define "behavior that tends toward extinction" as being "moral" without stretching the word "moral" all out of shape.

The Pragmatics of Patriotism (1973)

Men! Their minds were devious—they seemed to like twisted ways of doing things. It confirmed her opinion that men should not be allowed to vote.

Off the Main Sequence (2005)

He had let himself be bulldozed by the odds against him. He promised himself never again to pay any attention to the odds, but only to the issues.

Between Planets (1951)

I believe that almost all politicians are honest.

This I Believe: Our Noble, Essential Decency (1952)

No, I did not decide I was in love with him, after all. Enough men had had me by then that I was not inclined to mistake a hearty orgasm for eternal love.

To Sail Beyond the Sunset (1987)

Revolution is an art that I pursue rather than a goal I expect to achieve. Nor is this a source of dismay; a lost cause can be as spiritually satisfying as a victory.

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (1966)

Mr. Stone was satisfied, being sure in his heart that any person skilled with mathematical tools could learn anything else he needed to know, with or without a master.

The Rolling Stones (1952)

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Robert A. Heinlein (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.