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I will tell you what man is. He is a freak, an ejected foetus robbed of his natural development, thrown out into the world with a naked covering of parchment, with too little room for his teeth and a soft bulging skull like a bubble. But nature stirs a pudding there.

William Golding

The greatest pleasure is not – say – sex or geometry. It is just understanding. And if you can get people to understand their own humanity – well, that’s the job of the writer.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Geometry Get Greatest Humanity Own People Pleasure Say Sex Understanding
We did everything adults would do. What went wrong?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Adult Everything Went Wrong
Which is better — to be a pack of painted Indians like you are, or to be sensible like Ralph is? Which is better — to have rules and agree, or to hunt and kill? Which is better, law and rescue, or hunting and breaking things up?
WILLIAM GOLDING

Better Country Like Pach Paint People Sensible
I do like people to read the books twice, because I write my novels about ideas which concern me deeply and I think are important, and therefore I want people to take them seriously. And to read it twice of course is taking it seriously.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Book Concern Deeply Idea Important Like Novel People Raed Therefore Think Twice
But forgiveness must not only be given but received also.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Forgiveness Given Must Receive
Art is partly communication, but only partly. The rest is discovery.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Art Communication Discover Partly Rest
I think women are foolish to pretend they are equal to men, they are far superior and always have been.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Always Been Foolish Pretend Superior 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
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 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
Life’s scientific, but we don’t know, do we? Not certainly, I mean.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Certainty Know Life Mean Scientific
What a man does defiles him, not what is done by others.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Believe Define Done Man Other
And I’ve been wearing specs since I was three.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Been Since Specs Three Wear
If I blow the conch and they don’t come back; then we’ve had it. We shan’t keep the fire going. We’ll be like animals. We’ll never be rescued.” “If you don’t blow, we’ll soon be animals anyway.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Blow Come Back Conch
There is, they say, no fool like an old fool.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Fool Like Old Say
Childhood is a disease – a sickness that you grow out of.
WILLIAM GOLDING

Children Disease Grow Out Sickness

I will tell you what man is. He is a freak, an ejected foetus robbed of his natural development, thrown out into the world with a naked covering of parchment, with too little room for his teeth and a soft bulging skull like a bubble. But nature stirs a pudding there.

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I will tell you what man is. He is a freak, an ejected foetus robbed of his natural development, thrown out into the world with a naked covering of parchment, with too little room for his teeth and a soft bulging skull like a bubble. But nature stirs a pudding there.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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