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He lost himself in a maze of thoughts that were rendered vague by his lack of words to express them. Frowning, he tried again.

William Golding

A crowd of grade-three thinkers, all shouting the same thing, all warming their hands at the fire of their own prejudices, will not thank you for pointing out the contradictions in their beliefs. Man is a gregarious animal, and enjoys agreement as cows will graze all the same way on the side of a hill.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Crow Grade Hand Prejudice Same Shout Thing Thinker Warning
The writer probably knows what he meant when he wrote a book, but he should immediately forget what he meant when he’s written it.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Book Forget Immediately Know Meant Probably Writer Written Wrote
Of the authors writing in English, I’d mention Shakespeare and Milton. But all this is terribly high-hat and makes me sound very po-faced, I’m afraid; however, I just happen to like these enormous, swinging, great creatures.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Author Country English Face Hat High Make Mention Pe People Person Sound Terrible Very Write
The Navy’s a very gentlemanly business. You fire at the horizon to sink a ship and then you pull people out of the water and say, ‘Frightfully sorry, old chap.’
WILLIAM GOLDING

Business Fire Frightfully Gentleently Horizon Navy People Say Pull Ship Very Water
I am astonished at the ease with which uninformed persons come to a settled, a passionate opinion when they have no grounds for judgment.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Astonish Ease Prison Settle Uniform
The greatest ideas are the simplest.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Greatest Ideas Simplest
He found himself understanding the wearisomeness of this life,where every path was an improvisation and a considerable part of one’s waking life was spent watching one’s feet.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Considerate Every Found Himself Improvioson Life One Part Walk Wearisomeness
We’re all mad, the whole damned race. We’re wrapped in illusions, delusions, confusions about the penetrability of partitions, we’re all mad and in solitary confinement.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Confusion Delusion Illusion Mad Partition Peenetrablity Race Whole Dammed Wrap
If faces were different when lit from above or below — what was a face? What was anything?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Above Anything Below Face Facem Different When
He became absorbed beyond mere happiness as he felt himself exercising control over living things. He talked to them, urging them, ordering them. Driven back by the tide, his footprints became bays in which they were trapped and gave him the illusion of mastery.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Absorb Become Beyond Control Describe Excercise Felt Happiness Himself Living Thing
What are we? Humans? Or animals? Or savages?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Animal Human Savage
An orotundity, which I define as Nobelitis a pomposity in which one is treated as representative of more than oneself by someone conscious of representing more than himself.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Conscious Define Less More Nobelities One Orotundity Proposity Representative Someone Treat
I am not a theologian or a philosopher. I am a story teller.
WILLIAM GOLDING

People Person Philosopher Storyteller Theologian
The trouble was, if you were a chief you had to think, you had to be wise.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Chief Think Trouble Wise
Fancy thinking the Beast was something you could hunt and kill! You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Beast Close Fancy Kill Knew Part Something Think
Ralph… would treat the day’s decisions as though he were playing chess. The only trouble was that he would never be a very good chess player.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Chess Country Decision People Play Through
Beethoven for listening; Liszt, Chopin, and Beethoven for playing as well as Bach and Prokofiev and so on. If I kept going, this list would spiral. It’s as wide as literature; in fact, it is probably wider.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Beethoven Country Listen People Person Play Well
Which is better, law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Better Break Hunt Law Rescue Thing Up
The beast was harmless and horrible; and the news must reach the others as soon as possible.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Beast Harmless Horrible Must News Other Possible Reach Soon
Even if you got rid of paper, you would still have story-tellers. In fact, you had the story-tellers before you had the paper.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Before Even Fact Got Paper Still Story Teller Would
Heaven lies around us in our infancy.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Around Heaven Infancy Lie Our
How would I myself live in this proposed society? How long would it be before I went stark staring mad?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Before Long Mad Myself Proposed Society Stark Start
We’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages. We’re English, and the English are best at everything.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Best English Everything Obey Rule Savage Them
I really feel the novel has certain conveniences about it and has something so fundamental about it you could almost say that as long as there is paper, there is going to be the novel.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Almost Certain Convenience Could Feel Fundamental Long Novel Really Say Something
I believe man suffers from an appalling ignorance of his own nature. I produce my own view in the belief that it may be something like the truth.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Applying Believe Ignorance Man Nature Own Suffer
I don’t think they [contemporary writers] read me either. I mean, if we’re concerned genuinely with writing, I think we probably get on with our work.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Concern Contemporary Either Genuinely Mean Read Think Write
While I am on, I can discipline myself to that extent. When I am off, I can’t discipline myself at all. On the other hand, when I am off, there are so many things I like doing, it doesn’t really matter.
WILLIAM GOLDING

All Discipline Extent Myself Off While

He lost himself in a maze of thoughts that were rendered vague by his lack of words to express them. Frowning, he tried again.

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He lost himself in a maze of thoughts that were rendered vague by his lack of words to express them. Frowning, he tried again.

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