I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain.

To be with God is really to be involved in some enormous, overwhelming desire, and joy, and power which you cannot control, which controls you.

The interior life is a real life, and the intangible dreams of people have a tangible effect on the world.

Every legend, moreover, contains its residuum of truth, and the root function of language is to control the universe by describing it.

Color is not a human or a personal reality; it is a political reality.

Secrets hidden at the heart of midnight are simply waiting to be dragged to the light, as, on some unlucky high noon, they always are. But secrets shrouded in the glare of candor are bound to defeat even the most determined and agile inspector for the light is always changing and proves that the eye cannot be trusted.

It is a great shock at the age of five or six to find that in a world of Gary Coopers you are the Indian.