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Rosario Ferré Quotes

1938–2016 Puerto Rico

Rosario Ferré (September 28, 1938 – February 18, 2016) was a Puerto Rican writer, poet, and essayist.

Puerto Rico
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Random Rosario Ferré quote

16 quotes

Literature is prophetic-life often lives up to fiction

He created the house on the lagoon as one would create a poem or a statue, breathing life into its every stone. (chapter 6, p49)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

Abby used to say adaptability was the secret of survival-one's soul should bend and then it wouldn't break. (chapter 29, p295)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

A story is like building a chapel; a novel is a cathedral: That's the difference.

Backtalk: Women Writers Speak Out (1993)

Writing is a lot like sewing: You bring pieces together and make a quilt.

Backtalk: Women Writers Speak Out (1993)

I do believe in inspiration, but more so in dedication.

In Interviews with Latin American Writers (1988)

All writing is, in essence, a translation of reality into imagination. Writing implies a passage, a transformation that brings echoes of death and rebirth.

Latina Self-portraits (2000)

I know publishing it may have dire results, but a tale, like life itself, isn't finished until it is heard by someone with an understanding heart. (Isabel, p380)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

When they ran down the street, their souls barely clung to their bones, like fragile kites made of tissue paper. (chapter 4, p31)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

There's still a fraternity of men. They admire themselves, and they admire each other's works. I think they are a little bit scared of women, too.

Backtalk: Women Writers Speak Out (1993)

Every country that aspires to become a nation needs its heroes, its eminent civic and moral leaders, and if it doesn't have them, it's our duty to invent them. ("Sweet Diamond Dust")

Sweet Diamond Dust: And Other Stories (1988)

I have always wanted to understand certain things about myself and my life, but in order to know what I think, I have to write it down first.

In Interviews with Latin American Writers (1988)

These times made me search for guidance within myself, for a reason to live. This is where my literature comes from.

Centro Journal (2002)

She seldom smiled, but when she did, I felt as if she were pouring oil on my wounds. (chapter 19, p204)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

Coral explained to Manuel that political ideals were very important. Believing in something made you think; it kept your spirit alive. (chapter 34, p340)

The House on the Lagoon (1995)

I think that accepting biculturalism is smarter than perpetuating the unyielding Nazi, fascist idea that we can only speak Spanish in Puerto Rico and that we can only think in nationalist terms.

Centro Journal (2002)

Attribution

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