In the cruel and terrible time in which our generation has been condemned to live on this earth, we must never make peace with evil. We must never become indifferent to others or undemanding of ourselves.
Vasily GrossmanAnd in this silence of the dumb and these speeches of the blind, in this medly of people bound together by the same grief, terror and hope, in this hatred and lack of understanding between men who spoke the same tongue, you could see much of the tragedy of the twentieth century.
Vasily GrossmanChekhov said: let's put God - and all these grand progressive ideas - to one side. Let's begin with man; let's be kind and attentive to the individual man - whether he's a bishop, a peasant, an industrial magnate, a convict in the Sakhalin Islands, or a waiter in a restaurant. Let's begin with respect, compassion, and love for the individual - or we'll never get anywhere.
Vasily GrossmanHe was endowed with the extraordinary powers of endurance characteristic of madmen and simpletons.
Vasily GrossmanThere are people whose souls have just withered, people who are willing to go along with anything evil - anything so as not to be suspected of disagreeing with whoever is in power.
Vasily GrossmanThere is a deep and undeniable sadness in all this: whenever we see the dawn of an eternal good that will never be overcome by evil โ an evil that is itself eternal but will never succeed in overcoming good โ whenever we see this dawn, the blood of old people and children is always shed.
Vasily Grossman