Surprising Quotes - Page 4

• There is something thrilling in the mimesis of life's surprising unfolding.

  Joyce Carol Oates

  Mimesis, Unfolding, Thrilling

  "Writing Lessons From the Madly Prolific Joyce Carol Oates". Interview with Alexander Sammon, www.motherjones.com. September 10, 2016.

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• I just like surprising people. I never want to get to a place where people see that I am in a movie and they go see the movie and they expect a certain performance one way or the other. That is just inherently boring to me.

  John C. Reilly

  People, Want, Way

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• the main necessity on both sides of a revolution is kindness, which makes possible the most surprising things. To treat one's neighbor as oneself is the fundamental maxim for revolution.

  Freya Stark

  Kindness, Fundamentals, Revolution

  Freya Stark (1969). “The zodiac arch”

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• Religious faith in the case of the Hindus has never been allowed to run counter to scientific laws, moreover the former is never made a condition for the knowledge they teach, but there are always scrupulously careful to take into consideration the possibility that by reason both the agnostic and atheist may attain truth in their own way. Such tolerance may be surprising to religious believers in the West, but it is an integral part of Vedantic belief.

  Romain Rolland

  Running, Religious, Atheist

  "Life of Ramakrishna". Book by Romain Rolland, 1928.

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• Coming [to Paris] has been a wonderful experience, surprising in many respects, one of them being to find how much of an American I am.

  Augustus Saint-Gaudens

  Paris, Wonderful, Has Beens

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• The need for civility in society has never been more important. The foundation of kindness and civility begins in our homes. It is not surprising that our public discourse has declined in equal measure with the breakdown of the family. The family is the foundation for love and for maintaining spirituality. The family promotes an atmosphere where religious observance can flourish. There is indeed beauty all around when there's love at home.

  Quentin L. Cook

  Religious, Kindness, Home

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• It was surprising that Nature had gone tranquilly on with her golden process in the midst of so much devilment.

  Stephen Crane

  Gone, Golden, Midst

  Stephen Crane (2004). “The Red Badge of Courage”, p.41, Prestwick House Inc

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• As with many other things, there is a surprising amount of prejudice against quality control, but the proof of the pudding is still in the eating.

  Kaoru Ishikawa

  Quality, Prejudice, Pudding

  Kaoru Ishikawa (1990). “Introduction to Quality Control”, Productivity Press

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• Anyone who ever wondered how much they could love a child who did not spring from their own loins, know this: it is the same. The feeling of love is so profound, it's incredible and surprising.

  Nia Vardalos

  Children, Spring, Love Is

  FaceBook post by Nia Vardalos from Feb 14, 2013

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• There is nothing surprising in a Muslim or a Pathan like me subscribing to the creed of nonviolence. It is not a new creed. It was followed fourteen hundred years ago by the Prophet all the time he was in Mecca.

  Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan

  Years, Mecca, Prophet

  "A Man to Match His Mountains: Badshah Khan, Nonviolent Soldier of Islam". Book by Eknath Easwaran, 1984.

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• Abortion is the easy way out. It’s hardly surprising that people should choose the most convenient exit from awkward situations.

  Tony Abbott

  People, Abortion, Awkward

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• Math is the beautiful, rich, joyful, playful, surprising, frustrating, humbling and creative art that speaks to something transcendental. It is worthy of much exploration and examination because it is intrinsically beautiful, nothing more to say. Why play the violin? Because it is beautiful! Why engage in math? Because it too is beautiful!

  James Tanton

  Beautiful, Education, Art

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• Examine every word you put on paper. You'll find a surprising number that don't serve any purpose.

  William Zinsser

  Numbers, Purpose, Paper

  William Zinsser (2012). “On Writing Well, 30th Anniversary Edition: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction”, p.12, Harper Collins

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• Life is full of surprises. Why is that always surprising?

  Cathleen Schine

  Life Is, Surprise, Life Is Full Of Surprises

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• Cut through the ridicule and search for factual information in most of the skeptical commentary and one is usually left with nothing. This is not surprising. After all, how can one rationally object to a call for scientific examination of evidence? Be skeptical of the skeptics.

  Bernard Haisch

  Cutting, Examination, Information

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• I simply cannot get over what a surprising and wonderful life God has given me.

  Stanley Hauerwas

  Wonderful, Given, Get Over

  Stanley Hauerwas (2012). “Hannah's Child: A Theologian's Memoir”, p.165, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing

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• Solos are like sex, so it's surprising to me that there aren't more guys playing them

  Richie Sambora

  Music, Sex, Guy

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• Imperial politics represents the conquest of domestic politics and the latter's conversion into a crucial element of inverted totalitarianism. It makes no sense to ask how the democratic citizen could 'participate' substantively in imperial politics; hence it is not surprising that the subject of empire is taboo in electoral debates. No major politician or party has so much as publicly remarked on the existence of an American empire.

  Chalmers Johnson

  Party, Elements, Empires

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• So when you are faced with a decision on the euro, it is not surprising that many people are confused. They still try to squeeze the euro debate into the old language. But deep down it is a matter of deciding where one's future lies. It is a matter of political will and courage.

  Romano Prodi

  Confused, Lying, Political Will

  "UK-U.S. ties puzzling, says Prodi". www.cnn.com. April 29, 2002.

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• Considering how many fools can calculate, it is surprising that it should be thought either a difficult or a tedious task for any other fool to learn how to master the same tricks... Being myself a remarkably stupid fellow, I have had to unteach myself the difficulties, and now beg to present to my fellow fools the parts that are not hard. Master these thoroughly, and the rest will follow. What one fool can do, another can.

  Silvanus P. Thompson

  Education, Stupid, Math

  Silvanus P. Thompson (1914). “Calculus Made Easy: Differential Calculus and the Integral Calculus”

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• I was amazed that what I needed to survive could be carried on my back. And, most surprising of all, that I could carry it.

  Cheryl Strayed

  Needed, Amazed

  Cheryl Strayed (2012). “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail”, p.92, Vintage

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• The more the climate is forced to change, the more likely it is to hit some unforeseen threshold that can trigger quite fast, surprising and perhaps unpleasant changes.

  Richard Alley

  Climate, Triggers, Threshold

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• Women get consumed. Not surprising, considering the sheer amount of traffic a woman's body experiences. Tampons and speculums. Cocks, fingers, vibrators and more, between the legs, from behind, in the mouth.

  Gillian Flynn

  Body, Legs, Mouths

  Gillian Flynn (2012). “The Novels of Gillian Flynn: Sharp Objects, Dark Places”, p.198, Broadway Books

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• A nice blend of prediction and surprise seem to be at the heart of the best art.

  Wendy Carlos

  Art, Nice, Surprise

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