13 quotes
Times have changed since the Good Book was written, and you can’t hold with a purely Fundamentalist approach in complex times.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
Freedom of expression must also bow to the necessity for clear communication, as many of science fiction’s failed experiments of the sixties demonstrate.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
Do not preach to me of progress. Change is not desirable for its own sake, but only if it offers improvement.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
I decided that the devil finds work for idle hands and thanked him for his suggestion.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
The function of criticism should not be confused with the function of reform.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
Robots are nice to work with. They mind their own business, and they never have anything to say.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
The garden of life never seems to confine itself to the plot philosophers have laid out for its convenience. Maybe a few more tractors would do the trick.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
“Yes, I can understand greed.”
“I call it a desire for security.”
Unicorn Variations (1983)
I had troubles of my own—and even the most heartening of philosophical vistas is no match for, say, a toothache, if it happens to be your own.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
All of these things considered, it is not surprising that one can detect echoes, correspondences and even an eternal return or two within the work of a single author. The passage of time does bring changes, yea and alas; but still, I would recognize myself anywhere.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
He is the Angel of Death. Life lasts long, save for him; populations would rise up like tidal waves and inundate worlds, save for him; criminals would require trials and sentencing, save for him; and of course history might reflect unnecessary twisting and turnings, save for the Angel of Death.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
“It is no shame to lose to me, mortal. Even among mythical creatures there are very few who can give a unicorn a good game.”
“I am pleased that you were not wholly bored,” Martin said. “Now will you tell me what you were talking about concerning the destruction of my species?”
“Oh, that,” Tlingel replied.
Unicorn Variations (1983)
“Cute,” she said, smiling. “If the liberal arts do nothing else they provide engaging metaphors for the thinking they displace.”
Unicorn Variations (1983)