black
grey
blue
red
brown
white

The whole problem is to establish communication with ones self.

E. B. White

Mother: It’s broccoli, dear. — Child: I say it’s spinach, and I say the hell with it.
E. B. WHITE

Broccoli Child Hell Mother Say Spinach
Sailors have an expression about the weather: they say the weather is a great bluffer. I guess the same is true of our human society – things can look dark, then a break shows in the clouds, and all is changed.
E. B. WHITE

Bluffer Expression Great Guess Human Sailor Same Society True Weather
A poet dares be just so clear and no clearer… He unzips the veil from beauty, but does not remove it. A poet utterly clear is a trifle glaring.
E. B. WHITE

Beauty Clear Dare Poet Remove Unzip
Is there anything in the universe more beautiful and protective than the simple complexity of a spider’s web?
E. B. WHITE

Anything Universal Beautiful Complexity Protective Simple Spider Web
I get up every morning determined to both change the world and to have one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult.
E. B. WHITE

Both Challenge Determine Get Good Time Heel Morning One World
Fern was up at daylight, trying to rid the world of injustice. As a result, she now has a pig. A small one to be sure, but nevertheless a pig. It just shows what can happen if a person gets out of bed promptly.
E. B. WHITE

Daylight Fern Injustice Nevertheless Now One Pig Result Small Sure Try World
The rat had no morals, no conscience, no scruples, no consideration, no decency, no milk of rodent kindness, no compunctions, no higher feeling, no friendliness, no anything
E. B. WHITE

Compunction Conscience Consideration Decency Kindness Milk Moral Rat Rodent Scruples
Television will enormously enlarge the eye’s range, and, like radio, will advertise the Elsewhere. Together with the tabs, the mags, and the movies, it will insist that we forget the primary and the near in favor of the secondary and the remote.
E. B. WHITE

Advertise Else Enlarge Enormously Eye Radio Range Television Writer
And then, just as Wilbur was settling down for his morning nap, he heard again the thin voice that had addressed him the night before. “Salutations!” said the voice. Wilbur jumped to his feet. “Salu-what?” he cried. “Salutations!” repeated the voice.
E. B. WHITE

Addresses Again Before Down Heard Just Morning Night People Settle Voice
An editor is a person who knows more about writing than writers do but who has escaped the terrible desire to write.
E. B. WHITE

Desire Editor Escape More Person Terrible Write Writer
There are roughly three New Yorks. There is, first, the New York of the man or woman who was born here, who takes the city for granted and accepts its size and its turbulence as natural and inevitable. Second, there is the New York of the commuter.
E. B. WHITE

Born City Computer Country First Man New Roughly Take Three Woman
Safety is all well and good: I prefer freedom.
E. B. WHITE

Freedom Oood Prefer Safety Well
I don’t know which is more discouraging, literature or chickens.
E. B. WHITE

Chicken Discourage Know Literature More
A schoolchild should be taught grammar-for the same reason that a medical student should study anatomy.
E. B. WHITE

Anatomy Grammar Medical Reason Same Schoolchild Student Study Taught
Creation is in part merely the business of forgoing the great and small distractions.
E. B. WHITE

Business Creation Distraction Forgiving Great Merely Part Small
You’re terrific as far as I am concerned.
E. B. WHITE

Concerned Far Terrific
I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority.
E. B. WHITE

Bright Feel Future Less Man More Nature Optimistic Outwit Prove Spent Time
Nationalism has two fatal charms for its devotees: It presupposes local self-sufficiency, which is a pleasant and desirable condition, and it suggests, very subtly, a certain personal superiority by reason of one’s belonging to a place which is definable and familiar, as against a place that is strange, remote.
E. B. WHITE

Charm Condition Desirable Devotees Fatal Local Nationalism Prepossess Self Sufficiency Two
Why did you do all this for me?’ he asked. ‘I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.’ ‘You have been my friend,’ replied Charlotte. ‘That in itself is a tremendous thing.
E. B. WHITE

All Anything Ask Been Deserve Done Friend never You
Democracy is itself, a religious faith. For some it comes close to being the only formal religion they have.
E. B. WHITE

Being Close Come Democracy Formal Itself Religion Some
“What are they, and where are you?” screamed Wilbur. “Please, please, tell me where you are. And what are salutations?” “Salutations are greetings,” said the voice. “When I say ‘salutations,’ it’s just my fancy way of saying hello or good morning.
E. B. WHITE

Fancy Good Morning Salutation Scream What
The whole duty of a writer is to please and satisfy himself, and the true writer always plays to an audience of one.
E. B. WHITE

Audience Duty Himself True One Play Pleasure Satisfy Whole Writer
Use the smallest word that does the job.
E. B. WHITE

Job Smallest Use Word
It is quite possible that an animal has spoken to me and that I didn’t catch the remark because I wasn’t paying attention.
E. B. WHITE

Animal Attention Catch Play Possible Quite Remark Spoken
Wilbur never forgot Charlotte. Although he loved her children and grandchildren dearly, none of the new spiders ever quite took her place in his heart. She was in a class by herself. It is not often that someone comes along who is a true friend and a good writer. Charlotte was both.
E. B. WHITE

Children Country Dearly Ever Forget Grandmother never New None People Peron Quote Spider
There is nothing more likely to start disagreement among people or countries than an agreement.
E. B. WHITE

Agreement Country Disagreement Likely More Nothing People Start
A writer should concern himself with whatever absorbs his fancy, stirs his heart, and unlimbers his typewriter. … A writer has the duty to be good, not lousy: true, not false; lively, not dull; accurate, not full of error. He should tend to lift people up, not lower them down.
E. B. WHITE

Absorb Concern Heart Himself Stir Typewriter Writer

The whole problem is to establish communication with ones self.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

The whole problem is to establish communication with ones self.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More E. B. White Quotes