"“Life experience” does not amount to very much and could be learned from novels alone, e.g., from Balzac, without any help from life."

Elias Canetti Literature See all quotes by Elias Canetti →

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“Whenever the truth threatens, he hides behind a thought.”

“Nothing was better for you than humiliation, for there was nothing you felt more deeply.”

“His great holy books, which he does not know. They are so holy that he does not dare to open them.”

“If one has lived long enough, there is danger of succumbing to the word “God” merely because it was always there.”

“He sometimes tells himself that there is nothing more to be said, simply because he won’t get around to saying it.—How contemptible!”

“Say the most personal thing, say it, nothing else matters, don’t be ashamed, the generalities can be found in the newspaper.”

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