Henry Miller: Trending quotes (page 3)

“All I ask of life, he says, is a bunch of books, a bunch of dreams, and a bunch of cunt.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer

Life , Books , Dreams

“But it's just because the chances are all against you, just because there is so little hope, that life is sweet over here.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer

Life , Hope , Chance

“I'm delirious because I'm dying so fast.”

Henry Miller

“We do not talk - we bludgeon one another with facts and theories gleaned from cursory readings of newspapers, magazines and digests.”

Henry Miller

1945 Source: [Kaufman, Charlie, Inspirational Writing Advice From Charlie Kaufman - On Writing, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRfXcWT_oFs, YouTube, BAFTA Guru, 2017-01-06, 2020-03-09] (at 7:08 of 41:08)

Reading

“One’s destination is never a place, but rather a new way of looking at things.”

Henry Miller book Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch

Variant: Often misquoted as "One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things".
Source: Miller, H. (1957). Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch

Way

“The man who is forever disturbed about the condition of humanity either has no problems of his own or has refused to face them.”

Henry Miller book Sexus

Source: The Rosy Crucifixion I: Sexus (1949), Ch. 9, p. 205

Problem

“I see myself forever and ever as the ridiculous [person], the lonely soul, the wanderer, the restless frustrated artist, the [person] in love with love, always in search of the absolute, always seeking the unattainable.”

Henry Miller

Source: Stand Still Like the Hummingbird

Love , Soul , Search , Personality

“Day by day. No yesterdays and no tomorrows. The barometer never changes, the flag is always at half-mast.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer

Change

“My hunger and curiosity drive me forward in all directions at once.”

Henry Miller book Plexus

Source: The Rosy Crucifixion II: Plexus (1953), p. 61

Hunger

“I have always looked upon decay as being just as wonderful and rich an expression of life as growth.”

Henry Miller

Life

“I made up my mind that I would hold onto nothing, that I would expect nothing.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer

“have you ever seen a genius out there looking for a job? it's the saddest thing in the world. no one will hire him. there is only one place where he is always welcome- at the bottom.”

Henry Miller

World

“To have her here in bed with me, breathing on me, her hair in my mouth—I count that something of a miracle.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer

“Everywhere I go people are making a mess of their lives. Everyone has his private tragedy. It's in the blood now - misfortune, ennui, grief, suicide. The atmosphere is saturated with disaster, frustration, futility. Scratch and scratch, until there's no skin left. However, the effect upon me is exhilarating. Instead of being discouraged or depressed, I enjoy it. I am crying for more and more disasters, for bigger calamities, grander failures. I want the whole world to be out of whack, I want every one to scratch himself to death.”

Henry Miller book Tropic of Cancer

Source: Tropic of Cancer (1934), Chapter One
Context: Well, I'll take these pages and move on. Things are happening elsewhere. Things are always happening. It seems wherever I go there is drama. People are like lice - they get under your skin and bury themselves there. You scratch and scratch until the blood comes, but you can't get permanently deloused. Everywhere I go people are making a mess of their lives. Everyone has his private tragedy. It's in the blood now - misfortune, ennui, grief, suicide. The atmosphere is saturated with disaster, frustration, futility. Scratch and scratch, until there's no skin left. However, the effect upon me is exhilarating. Instead of being discouraged or depressed, I enjoy it. I am crying for more and more disasters, for bigger calamities, grander failures. I want the whole world to be out of whack, I want every one to scratch himself to death.

Death , People , World , Failure

“She was to me, and still is, the greatest person I have known - one who can truly be called a "devoted" soul. I owe her everything.”

Henry Miller

Letters of Henry Miller and Wallace Fowlie (1975)

Soul , Personality

“It is with the soul that we grasp the essence of another person, not with the mind, not even with the heart.”

Henry Miller

Variant: It is with the soul that we grasp the essence of another human being, not with the mind, nor even with the heart.

Soul , Heart , Personality

“My understanding of the meaning of a book is that the book itself disappears from sight, that it is chewed alive, digested and incorporated into the system as flesh and blood which in turn creates new spirit and reshapes the world.”

Henry Miller

Books , World , Understanding