“To talk about paintings is not only difficult but perhaps pointless too. You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing-- what language can communicate. Painting has nothing to do with that.”

“My paintings are wiser than I am.”

“I believe that art has a kind of rightness, as in music, when we hear whether or not a note is false”

“To her amazement, she realized that the way of life of these people was nothing more than an indeterminate fiction, casually knotted together at particular points that were used again and again. With four or five remarks, and a couple of facial expressions, she had mastered it with no problem at all.”

“Expressing emotion is not so easy. He has to remind himself that English is not her first language. Expressing emotion can be difficult even when the words are familiar. ”

“Nevertheless . . was a word, certainly, but much more than a word, it was a concept. "Nevertheless" was what you said when you were not going to budge, whether expressing an opinion or an intention. It was a statement, not a question, and the only word in the English language to which it was pointless to respond. If you wanted to end a conversation or an argument "nevertheless" was your word.”

“The state of admiration is a condition of feeblemindedness. Most people are feebleminded all their lives only because they admire. Only a dimwit admires, the smart one doesn’t admire: he respects, observes, understands.”