Heroic Quotes - Page 12

• There are times when we must sink to the bottom of our misery to understand truth, just as we must descend to the bottom of a well to see the stars in broad daylight.

  Vaclav Havel

  Stars, Hero, Political

  Vaclav Havel, John Keane (2016). “The Power of the Powerless: Citizens Against the State in Central Eastern Europe: Citizens Against the State in Central Eastern Europe”, p.78, Routledge

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• Modern man must descend the spiral of his own absurdity to the lowest point; only then can he look beyond it. It is obviously impossible to get around it, jump over it, or simply avoid it.

  Vaclav Havel

  Hero, Men, Looks

  "Disturbing the Peace". Book by Vaclav Havel, 1986.

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• Either you repeat the same conventional doctrines everybody is saying, or else you say something true, and it will sound like it's from Neptune.

  Noam Chomsky

  Hero, Doctrine, Neptune

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• The essay I had to read was called, "An Essay on Criticism" by Alexander Pope. The first challenge was that the essay was, in fact, a very long poem in "heroic couplets". If something is called an essay, it should be an essay.

  Maureen Johnson

  Long, Challenges, Criticism

  Maureen Johnson (2011). “The Name of the Star”, p.41, Penguin

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• They may be called the Palace Guard, the City Guard, or the Patrol. Whatever the name, their purpose in any work of heroic fantasy is identical: it is, round about Chapter Three (or ten minutes into the film) to rush into the room, attack the hero one at a time, and be slaughtered. No one ever asks them if they want to. This book is dedicated to those fine men.

  Terry Pratchett

  Book, Hero, Men

  "Guards! Guards!". Book by Terry Pratchett, 1989.

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• The true hero is one who conquers his own anger and hatred.

  Dalai Lama

  Inspirational, Hero, Hatred

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• We live in an age in which there is no heroic death.

  Yukio Mishima

  Age, Heroic Death

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• Most of our platitudes notwithstanding, self-deception remains the most difficult deception. The tricks that work on others count for nothing in that very well-lit back alley where one keeps assignation with oneself: no winning smiles will do here, no prettily drawn lists of good intentions. One shuffles flashily but in vain through one's marked cards- the kindness done for the wrong reason, the apparent triumph which involved no real effort, the seemingly heroic act into which one had been shamed.

  Joan Didion

  Kindness, Real, Winning

  Joan Didion (1968). “Slouching towards Bethlehem”

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• People will say it's sad that she leaves a lesser scar, that fewer remember her, that she was loved deeply but not widely. But it's not sad, Van Houten. It's triumphant. It's heroic. Isn't that the real heroism? Like the doctors say: First, do no harm.

  John Green

  Real, Doctors, People

  John Green (2012). “The Fault in Our Stars”, p.177, Penguin

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• Nor is there wanting in the press Some spirit to stand simply forth, Heroic in it nakedness, Against the uttermost of earth. The tale of earth's unhonored things Sounds nobler there than 'neath the sun; And the mind whirls and the heart sings, And a shout greets the daring one.

  Robert Frost

  Life, Heart, Mind

  Robert Frost, Thomas Fasano (2008). “Selected Early Poems of Robert Frost”, p.28, Coyote Canyon Press

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• No animal, according to the rules of animal-etiquette, is ever expected to do anything strenuous, or heroic, or even moderately active during the off-season of winter.

  Kenneth Grahame

  Winter, Animal, Etiquette

  Kenneth Grahame (1908). “The Wind in the Willows”, p.76

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• In the heroic effort of the handcart pioneers, we learn a great truth. All must pass through a refiner’s fire, and the insignificant and unimportant in our lives can melt away like dross and make our faith bright, intact, and strong. There seems to be a full measure of anguish, sorrow, and often heartbreak for everyone, including those who earnestly seek to do right and be faithful. Yet this is part of the purging to become acquainted with God.

  James E. Faust

  Strong, Fire, Lds

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• Even as she’d come to know the real Ralston—the Ralston who was not cut from heroic cloth—Callie had failed to see the truth. And, instead of seeing her own heartbreak coming, she had fallen in love, not with her fantasy, but with this new, flawed Ralston.

  Sarah MacLean

  Real, Cutting, Fantasy

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• She tried to open the bottle, but the top slipped through her fingers without moving. He took the bottle from her hand and opened it with his thumb and index finger. There was nothing special in the gesture and yet she found it strangely fascinating like a small heroic feat performed specially for her.

  Paolo Giordano

  Moving, Hands, Special

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• Keep out of this," Lucian said. "I'm not smiting anybody." "You're showing mercy." Catch-a-Tick nodded. "That's heroic, too. But not as good as smiting.

  Lloyd Alexander

  Mercy, Tick, Said

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• My own heroes are the dreamers, those men and women who tried to make the world a better place than when they found it, whether in small ways or great ones. Some succeeded, some failed, most had mixed results... but it is the effort that's heroic, as I see it. Win or lose, I admire those who fight the good fight.

  George R. R. Martin

  Hero, Fighting, Winning

  Interview with George R. R. Martin and all the Wild Cards contributors from BUSTED FLUSH, fantasyhotlist.blogspot.ru. December 10, 2008.

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• He found that it was easy to make a heroic gesture, but hard to abide by its results.

  W. Somerset Maugham

  Gestures, Easy, Results

  W. Somerset Maugham (2013). “The Essential W. Somerset Maugham Collection”, p.1809, eBookIt.com

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• You want to believe in black and white, good and evil, heroes that are truly heroic, villains that are just plain bad, but I've learned in the past year that things are rarely so simple. The good guys can do some truly awful things, and the bad guys can sometimes surprise the heck out of you.

  Karen Marie Moning

  Hero, Believe, Black And White

  Karen Marie Moning (2016). “The Fever Series 7-Book Bundle: Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, Dreamfever, Shadowfever, Iced, Burned”, p.185, Dell

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• The truth is that the heroism of your childhood entertainments was not true valor. It was theatre. The grand gesture, the moment of choice, the mortal danger, the external foe, the climactic battle whose outcome resolves all--all designed to appear heroic, to excite and gratify and audience. Gentlemen, welcome to the world of reality--there is no audience. No one to applaud, to admire. No one to see you. Do you understand?Here is the truth--actual heroism receives no ovation, entertains no one. No one queues up to see it. No one is interested.

  David Foster Wallace

  Real, Choices, Childhood

  "The Pale King". Book by David Foster Wallace, 2011.

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• I should throw you off this building minus the flying horse and see how heroic you sound on the way down.

  Rick Riordan

  Horse, Flying, Sound

  Rick Riordan (2007). “The Titan's curse”

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• Boxing is a glorious sport to watch and boxers are incredible, heroic athletes, but it's also, to be honest, a stupid game to play. Even the winners can end up with crippling brain damage. In a lot of ways, hustling is the same. But you learn something special from playing the most difficult games, the games where winning is close to impossible and losing is catastrophic: You learn how to compete as if your life depended on it. That's the lesson I brought with me to the so-called "legitimate" world.

  Jay-Z

  Sports, Stupid, Athlete

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• When you do something stupid and die, it's pathetic," I said. "When you do something stupid and survive it, then you get to call it impressive or heroic.

  Jim Butcher

  Stupid, Said, Impressive

  Jim Butcher (2006). “Dead Beat: A Novel of The Dresden Files”, p.384, Penguin

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• Heroes are heroes because they are heroic in behavior, not because they won or lost.

  Nassim Nicholas Taleb

  Hero, Behavior, Lost

  Nassim Nicholas Taleb (2016). “Incerto 4-Book Bundle: Fooled by Randomness The Black Swan The Bed of Procrustes Antifragile”, p.1465, Random House

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• People think me a sort of Florence Nightingale, but I have no heroic qualities. I simply don’t feel very much.

  Franny Billingsley

  Thinking, People, Florence Nightingale

  Franny Billingsley (2013). “Chime”, p.41, A&C Black

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• Courage is a heart word. The root of the word courage is cor - the Latin word for heart. In one of its earliest forms, the word courage meant "To speak one's mind by telling all one's heart." Over time, this definition has changed, and today, we typically associate courage with heroic and brave deeds. But in my opinion, this definition fails to recognize the inner strength and level of commitment required for us to actually speak honestly and openly about who we are and about our experiences -- good and bad. Speaking from our hearts is what I think of as "ordinary courage.

  Brené Brown

  Latin, Commitment, Heart

  "I thought it was just me". Book by Brené Brown, February 2007.

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