117 Literature Quotes For Inspiration

Are you searching for the perfect words to uplift your spirit, spark your imagination, or reignite your love for literature? We've got you covered. In the world of books, every page holds the potential to transport and transform, offering wisdom and insight that resonates across time and space. Our carefully curated selection of the top 117 literature quotes gathers the brilliance of classic and contemporary authors alike, each line a testament to the power of the written word. Whether you're an avid reader or a casual browser, these quotes promise to inspire and provoke thought, serving as little reminders of the magic that lies within every story. So, dive in and let these literary gems be your muse today.

1. “I ran across an excerpt today (in English translation) of some dialogue/narration from the modern popular writer, Paulo Coelho in his book: Aleph.(Note: bracketed text is mine.)... 'I spoke to three scholars,' [the character says 'at last.'] ...two of them said that, after death, the [sic (misprint, fault of the publisher)] just go to Paradise. The third one, though, told me to consult some verses from the Koran. [end quote]' ...I can see that he's excited. [narrator]' ...Now I have many positive things to say about Coelho: He is respectable, inspiring as a man, a truth-seeker, and an appealing writer; but one should hesitate to call him a 'literary' writer based on this quote. A 'literary' author knows that a character's excitement should be 'shown' in his or her dialogue and not in the narrator's commentary on it. Advice for Coelho: Remove the 'I can see that he's excited' sentence and show his excitement in the phrasing of his quote.(Now, in defense of Coelho, I am firmly of the opinion, having myself written plenty of prose that is flawed, that a novelist should be forgiven for slipping here and there.)Lastly, it appears that a belief in reincarnation is of great interest to Mr. Coelho ... Just think! He is a man who has achieved, (as Leonard Cohen would call it), 'a remote human possibility.' He has won lots of fame and tons of money. And yet, how his preoccupation with reincarnation—none other than an interest in being born again as somebody else—suggests that he is not happy!” - Roman Payne

2. “Words have the power to make things true if they're said right.” - Alden Bell The Reapers Are The Angels

3. “It was a wonderful experience. She mistrusted his very slumbers--and she seemed to think I could tell her why! Thus a poor mortal seduced by the charm of an apparition might have tried to wring from another ghost the tremendous secret of the claim the other world holds over a disembodied soul astray amongst the passions of this earth. The very ground on which I stood seemed to melt under my feet. And it was so simple too; but if the spirits evoked by our fears and our unrest have ever to vouch for each other's constancy before the forlorn magicians that we are, then I--I alone of us dwellers in the flesh--have shuddered in the hopeless chill of such a task.” - Joseph Conrad 'Lord Jim'

4. “Cosmos is God, who whispered the syllable of life.” - Dejan Stojanovic

5. “Darkness does not age; nothing is always nothing” - Dejan Stojanovic

6. “Procreation annihilates eternity.” - Dejan Stojanovic

7. “Knighthood lies above eternity; it doesn’t live off fame, but rather deeds.” - Dejan Stojanovic

8. “Infinity is the end. End without infinity is but a new beginning.” - Dejan Stojanovic

9. “Sun is a hearthstone, a merry-go-round of extinguished hearthstones.” - Dejan Stojanovic

10. “Sunbathe from within.” - Dejan Stojanovic

11. “Different languages, the same thoughts; servant to thoughts and their masters.” - Dejan Stojanovic

12. “How many unuttered words died in the heads of those for whom a word was too expensive.” - Dejan Stojanovic

13. “Everybody talks, but there is no conversation.” - Dejan Stojanovic

14. “We hear only our own voices, still echoes returning to our emptiness.” - Dejan Stojanovic

15. “How alive is thought, invisible, yet without thought there is no sight.” - Dejan Stojanovic

16. “Teaching others, he corrected himself.” - Dejan Stojanovic

17. “He did not waste time in a vain search for a place in history.” - Dejan Stojanovic

18. “After Homer and Dante, is a whole century of creating worth one Shakespeare?” - Dejan Stojanovic

19. “Either all lights are turned off or one inner light is missing.” - Dejan Stojanovic

20. “You not only are hunted by others, you unknowingly hunt yourself.” - Dejan Stojanovic

21. “We need knew knights, but without swords.” - Dejan Stojanovic

22. “Say No! Accept the burdens of revenge.” - Dejan Stojanovic

23. “Even if you are alone you wage war with yourself.” - Dejan Stojanovic

24. “Holy books are an insult to a God with good intentions.” - Dejan Stojanovic

25. “Whatever others may say, they say it to deceive and comfort themselves, not help you.” - Dejan Stojanovic

26. “Now that we are all so smart, we don’t easily find resolutions.” - Dejan Stojanovic

27. “He thought others were small; that was his greatness.” - Dejan Stojanovic

28. “We measure everything by ourselves with almost a necessary conceit.” - Dejan Stojanovic

29. “The game itself is bigger than the winning.” - Dejan Stojanovic

30. “Statesmen are grocers, ambitious clowns.” - Dejan Stojanovic

31. “Faith is a question of eyesight; even the blind can see that.” - Dejan Stojanovic

32. “Your head is a lit chamber.” - Dejan Stojanovic

33. “What we call life is only talk of nature.” - Dejan Stojanovic

34. “It is easy to see the glow but hard to recognize the awakening of silence.” - Dejan Stojanovic

35. “If what we think of ourselves were true, the planet would overflow with geniuses.” - Dejan Stojanovic

36. “Is it possible to write a poem or are these words just screams of outlaws exiled to the desert?” - Dejan Stojanovic

37. “You don’t know anything, but I know even less.” - Dejan Stojanovic

38. “They blossomed, they did not talk about blossoming.” - Dejan Stojanovic

39. “They grew; they did not talk about growing.” - Dejan Stojanovic

40. “Pose your questions to people and you will get countless useless answers.” - Dejan Stojanovic

41. “For a moment at least, be a smile on someone else’s face.” - Dejan Stojanovic

42. “If we were to understand how important it is to say something and say it well, maybe we wouldn’t write a single word, but that would be tragic.” - Dejan Stojanovic

43. “Forget decorated generals, tell me about Private Ryan.” - Dejan Stojanovic

44. “Tell me something only you know and make a new friend.” - Dejan Stojanovic

45. “Before the first before and after the last after, there is night waiting.” - Dejan Stojanovic

46. “Our desire to say more grows bigger and what to say about it, except that saying is not always about saying, growing is not always about growing.” - Dejan Stojanovic

47. “Although all days are equally long regardless of the season, some days are long not only seasonally but by rewards they offer.” - Dejan Stojanovic

48. “There is a moonlight note in the Moonlight Sonata; there is a thunder note in an angry sky.” - Dejan Stojanovic

49. “Art is apotheosis; often, the complaint of beauty.” - Dejan Stojanovic

50. “Nature is an outcry, unpolished truth; the art—a euphemism—tamed wilderness.” - Dejan Stojanovic

51. “He had an answer to almost everything and he retired at an early age.” - Dejan Stojanovic

52. “I fly through memory to find a newborn love.” - Dejan Stojanovic

53. “Perfection seems sterile; it is final, no mystery in it; it's a product of an assembly line.” - Dejan Stojanovic

54. “To accomplish the perfect perfection, a little imperfection helps.” - Dejan Stojanovic

55. “Senses empower limitations, senses expand vision within borders, senses promote understanding through pleasure.” - Dejan Stojanovic

56. “Great poets are great copy editors.” - Dejan Stojanovic

57. “We love the imperfect shapes in nature and in the works of art, look for an intentional error as a sign of the golden key and sincerity found in true mastery.” - Dejan Stojanovic

58. “When all is lost, there is still a memory.” - Dejan Stojanovic

59. “If an ancient man saw planes two thousand years ago He would've thought they were birds Or angels from another world Or messengers from other planets.” - Dejan Stojanovic

60. “Some people complain there are too many people on earth, Some people complain about secret societies, Some people accuse others of not being able to wake up early. Almost all people complain about something.” - Dejan Stojanovic

61. “All people are enslaved by something.” - Dejan Stojanovic

62. “There is always the question why And there is always life, Which doesn't need an answer.” - Dejan Stojanovic

63. “Possible impossibility emerges From an impossible possibility, Or possibly, impossible possibility Blooms from the impossibly possible impossibility.” - Dejan Stojanovic

64. “Possible is more a matter of attitude, A matter of decision, to choose Among the impossible possibilities, When one sound opportunity Becomes a possible solution.” - Dejan Stojanovic

65. “Since nothing is absolute There is no absolute silence, Only an appearance Of temporary peace.” - Dejan Stojanovic

66. “No reason for a feverish rush For we will all arrive in the same place At the right time. Justice will be served. There will be no better or worse, No big and small, no rewards, no punishment, No guilt, no judges, no hierarchies; Only silent equality.” - Dejan Stojanovic

67. “To say more while saying less is the secret of being simple.” - Dejan Stojanovic

68. “To leave out beautiful sunsets is the secret of good taste.” - Dejan Stojanovic

69. “To hide feelings when you are near crying is the secret of dignity.” - Dejan Stojanovic

70. “To cut and tighten sentences is the secret of mastery.” - Dejan Stojanovic

71. “To keep the air fresh among words is the secret of verbal cleanliness.” - Dejan Stojanovic

72. “To expect to be kissed having bad breath is the secret of a fool.” - Dejan Stojanovic

73. “I imagined I was God for a millisecond And became speechless for a long time.” - Dejan Stojanovic

74. “Based on the law of probability Everything is possible because The sheer existence of possibility Confirms the existence Of impossibility.” - Dejan Stojanovic

75. “It is beautiful to talk about beautiful things and even more beautiful to silently gaze at them.” - Dejan Stojanovic

76. “It is beautiful to express love and even more beautiful to feel it.” - Dejan Stojanovic

77. “Beauty is a cheap word, but beauty remains priceless.” - Dejan Stojanovic

78. “The world is a navy in an empty ocean.” - Dejan Stojanovic

79. “In every sound, the hidden silence sleeps.” - Dejan Stojanovic

80. “The world cannot be translated; It can only be dreamed of and touched.” - Dejan Stojanovic

81. “If emptiness is empty, how can something be borne or awaken from it?” - Dejan Stojanovic

82. “To come to nothing through something is the way to outside from both sides.” - Dejan Stojanovic

83. “Earth is the source of light.” - Dejan Stojanovic

84. “Although personal calling I sense,Who am I? even if I am, I don't know.” - Dejan Stojanovic

85. “What does infinity mean to you? Are you not infinity and yourself?” - Dejan Stojanovic

86. “There is a pledge of the big and of the small in the infinite.” - Dejan Stojanovic

87. “There are no clear borders, Only merging invisible to the sight.” - Dejan Stojanovic

88. “Will the day tell its secret Before it disappears, Becomes timeless night.” - Dejan Stojanovic

89. “He awaits himself while walking, out of the icy circle to escape.” - Dejan Stojanovic

90. “He knows he will be born again, And start fresh anew.” - Dejan Stojanovic

91. “All dust is the same dust. Temporarily separated To go peacefully And enjoy the eternal nap.” - Dejan Stojanovic

92. “To the knights of faith nobody believes.” - Dejan Stojanovic

93. “New Rome will be destroyedBy the attacks of new vandals.God always remains silent.” - Dejan Stojanovic

94. “Neither alive nor dead; No one lets up, No one wins.” - Dejan Stojanovic

95. “Death swallows death.” - Dejan Stojanovic

96. “Geography and mileage mean nothing. Separate is a single word that covers all distances that aren't together.” - Rivera Sun

97. “We will go far away, to nowhere, to conquer, to fertilize until we become tired. Then we will stop and there will be our home.” - Dejan Stojanovic

98. “I enjoy it when the world smiles; the more smiles, the warmer I am.” - Dejan Stojanovic

99. “And this that you call solitude is in fact a big crowd.” - Dejan Stojanovic

100. “Creating means living.” - Dejan Stojanovic

101. “Instead of imitating me, you simply loiter.” - Dejan Stojanovic

102. “I am the shore and the ocean, awaiting myself on both sides.” - Dejan Stojanovic

103. “I travel, always arriving in the same place.” - Dejan Stojanovic

104. “With me: one minus one = one; with you: it’s zero. Here lies the only difference.” - Dejan Stojanovic

105. “I lose faith in mathematics, logical and rigid. What with those that even zero doesn’t accept?” - Dejan Stojanovic

106. “Mathematics doesn’t care about those beyond the numbers.” - Dejan Stojanovic

107. “Through everything I have passed but nowhere I have been.” - Dejan Stojanovic

108. “In the biggest and the smallest I sleep but at the same place I stay.” - Dejan Stojanovic

109. “Wherever I go, I meet myself.” - Dejan Stojanovic

110. “In a myriad of ways you tell one truth.” - Dejan Stojanovic

111. “Long ago we conquered our passions looking at ourselves in the mirror of eternity.” - Dejan Stojanovic

112. “He will understand when it is too late that it is easier to love.” - Dejan Stojanovic

113. “We don’t know anything about silent sages, buried knowledge, the eye of the mute poet, serene seers, yet how many talkative destroyers, prophets and ideologues, teachers and beautifiers there are on the other side.” - Dejan Stojanovic

114. “Nothing is made, nothing disappears. The same changes, at the same places, never stopping.” - Dejan Stojanovic

115. “To be stories at all they must be a series of events: but it must be understood that this series - the plot, as we call it - is only really a net whereby to catch something else.” - C.S. Lewis

116. “But you raised a ruckus about and threatened to perform a Julius Caesarian on anybody on anybody who calls April the cruelest month- I was Damn born out of the loins of my father in the spring of April, you claimed. Surgeon, you stood up for the month of buds and bitches like a true Kuon Kunos” - APORVAKALA

117. “And that was the point of children, thought Caroline Meddey: to bind us to the earth and to the present, to distract us from death.” - Amanda Coplin