"The mind was a marvellous instrument, thought Shimrod; when left to wander untended, it often arrived at curious destinations."

Jack Vance Literature See all quotes by Jack Vance →

React to this quote

More by Jack Vance

“Evidently you do not trust me. This does not predispose me to trust you.”

“My fees are not too high. Your wage scale may simply be too low.”

“My clever baton holds your unnatural sorcery in abeyance.”

““Why not alter the habits of a lifetime and speak with candour?” asked Shimrod. “Truth, after all, need not be only the tactic of last resort.”

“I suspect that the word was invented by second-rate intelligences to describe the incomprehensible activities of their betters.”

“Of all questions, why? is the least pertinent. It begs the question; it assumes the larger part of its own response; to wit, that a sensible response exists.”

Resonant Thoughts

"One of the major problems of our society is that so many people are too intelligent to accept religion, but not intelligent or strong-minded enough to look for acceptable alternatives; in the same way…"

— Colin Wilson

Literature1989–2013

#mind

"A dead language is not only one no longer spoken or written, it is unyielding language content to admire its own paralysis. Like statist language, censored and censoring. Ruthless in its policing duti…"

— Toni Morrison

Literature1931–2019

#mind

"Another response to racism has been the establishment of unlearning racism workshops, which are often led by white women. These workshops are important, yet they tend to focus primarily on cathartic i…"

— bell hooks

Education1952–2021

#knowledge

"Curious that allegations re Russia giving Taliban $ to kill US soldiers comes just in time to sabotage talks re the last nuclear treaty between the US and Russia, the withdrawal of more US troops from…"

— Medea Benjamin

Politics1952

#life