List of Penelope Fitzgerald Quotes

Surely You Have To Succeed, If You Give Everything You Have.' 'i Don't See Why. Everyone Has To Give Everything They Have Eventually. They Have To Die. Dying Can't Be Called A Success.

It's Very Good For An Idea To Be Commonplace. The Important Thing Is That A New Idea Should Develop Out Of What Is Already There So That It Soon Becomes An Old Acquaintance. Old Acquaintances Aren't By Any Means Always Welcome, But At Least One Can't Be Mistaken As To Who Or What They Are.

I Believe That People Should Write Biographies Only About People They Love, Or Understand, Or Both. Novels, On The Other Hand, Are Often Better If They're About People The Writer Doesn't Like Very Much.

Behind Their Dark Glass, The Mad Own Nothing.

A Word Of Advice. If, As A Young Man, Student, You Are Tormented By A Desire For Women, It Is Best To Get Out Into The Fresh Air As Much As Possible.

More Than That, I Believe That The Grass Is Green Because Green Is Restful To The Human Eye, That The Sky Is Blue To Give Us An Idea Of The Infinite. And That Blood Is Red So That Murder Will Be More Easily Detected And Criminals Will Be Brought To Justice. Yes, And I Believe That I Shall Live Forever, But I Shall Live Without Reason.

If They Don't Depend On True Evidence, Scientists Are No Better Than Gossips.

On The Whole, I Think You Should Write Biographies Of Those You Admire And Respect, And Novels About Human Beings Who You Think Are Sadly Mistaken.

Duty Is What No-one Else Will Do At The Moment.

An Unjust Punishment Is Never Forgotten.

The Body, Then, Has A Mind Of Its Own. It Must Follow, Then, That The Mind Has A Body Of Its Own, Even If It’s Like Nothing That We Can See Around Us, Or Have Ever Seen.

A Good Book Is The Precious Life-blood Of A Master-spirit, Embalmed And Treasured Up On Purpose To A Life Beyond Life, And As Such It Must Surely Be A Necessary Commodity.