“There is nothing quite so terrifying as a mad sheep.”
Claud Cockburn (1904–1981) Irish journalist
Page 62
A Discord of Trumpets (1956)
“Madness alone is truly terrifying, inasmuch as you cannot placate it by threats, persuasion, or bribes.”
— Joseph Conrad, book The Secret Agent
Source: The Secret Agent
Last update Jan. 29, 2026. History
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Joseph Conrad127
Polish-British writer 1857–1924Related quotes
“Threats alone are the weapons of the threatened man.”
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“This book has neither the virtue of irony nor deserves the sympathy reserved for the truly mad.”
Peter Greenaway (1942) British film director
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Context: Terror is not a new weapon. Throughout history it has been used by those who could not prevail, either by persuasion or example. But inevitably they fail, either because men are not afraid to die for a life worth living, or because the terrorists themselves came to realize that free men cannot be frightened by threats, and that aggression would meet its own response. And it is in the light of that history that every nation today should know, be he friend or foe, that the United States has both the will and the weapons to join free men in standing up to their responsibilities.
“Creation which cannot express itself becomes madness.”
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