To be an American is not...a matter of blood; it is a matter of an idea--and history is the image of that idea.
Robert Penn WarrenIf you look at a thing, the very fact of your looking changes it...if you think about yourself, that very fact changes you.
Robert Penn WarrenAnd all times are one time, and all those dead in the past never lived before our definition gives them life, and out of the shadow their eyes implore us. That is what all of us historical researchers believe. And we love truth.
Robert Penn WarrenDirt's a funny thing,' the Boss said. 'Come to think of it, there ain't a thing but dirt on this green God's globe except what's under water, and that's dirt too. It's dirt makes the grass grow. A diamond ain't a thing in the world but a piece of dirt that got awful hot. And God-a-Mighty picked up a handful of dirt and blew on it and made you and me and George Washington and mankind blessed in faculty and apprehension. It all depends on what you do with the dirt. That right?
Robert Penn Warren