“You be greater than your feelings. I don't demand this of you - life does. Otherwise you'll be washed away by feelings. You'll be washed out to sea and never seen again.”

—  Philip Roth , book Indignation

Source: Indignation

Last update June 3, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "You be greater than your feelings. I don't demand this of you - life does. Otherwise you'll be washed away by feelings.…" by Philip Roth?
Philip Roth photo
Philip Roth 95
American novelist 1933–2018

Related quotes

Harry Chapin photo

“If you try to look
But you don't touch
Then you won't touch
But you'll never feel
And if you don't feel
You'll never cry
And if you don't cry
Then you'll never heal.”

Harry Chapin (1942–1981) American musician

If You Want to Feel
Song lyrics, Living Room Suite (1978)

Eleanor Roosevelt photo

“Do what you feel in your heart to be right — for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.”

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American politician, diplomat, and activist, and First Lady of the United States

As quoted in How to Stop Worrying and Start Living (1944; 1948) by Dale Carnegie; though Roosevelt has sometimes been credited with the originating the expression, "Damned if you do and damned if you don't" is set in quote marks, indicating she herself was quoting a common expression in saying this. Actually, this saying was coined back even earlier, 1836, by evangelist Lorenzo Dow in his sermons about ministers saying the Bible contradicts itself, telling his listeners, "… those who preach it up, to make the Bible clash and contradict itself, by preaching somewhat like this: 'You can and you can't-You shall and you shan't-You will and you won't-And you will be damned if you do-And you will be damned if you don't.' "

Eleanor Roosevelt photo

“Do what you feel in your heart to be right — for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be "damned if you do, and damned if you don't."”

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American politician, diplomat, and activist, and First Lady of the United States

As quoted in How to Stop Worrying and Start Living (1944; 1948) by Dale Carnegie; though Roosevelt has sometimes been credited with the originating the expression, "Damned if you do and damned if you don't" is set in quote marks, indicating she herself was quoting a common expression in saying this. Actually, this saying was coined back even earlier, 1836, by evangelist Lorenzo Dow in his sermons about ministers saying the Bible contradicts itself, telling his listeners, "… those who preach it up, to make the Bible clash and contradict itself, by preaching somewhat like this: 'You can and you can't-You shall and you shan't-You will and you won't-And you will be damned if you do-And you will be damned if you don't.' "

Manuel Puig photo

“The nicest thing about feeling happy is that you think you'll never be unhappy again.”

Manuel Puig (1932–1990) Argentine author and screenwriter

Source: Kiss of the Spider Woman and Two Other Plays

Richelle Mead photo
Azar Nafisi photo
Haruki Murakami photo

“When the fire goes out, you'll start feeling the cold. You'll wake up whether you want to or not.”

Haruki Murakami (1949) Japanese author, novelist

Source: After the Quake

Anne Lamott photo

“The depth of the feeling continued to surprise and threaten me, but each time it hit again and I bore it… I would discover that it hadn't washed me away.”

Anne Lamott (1954) Novelist, essayist, memoirist, activist

Source: Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith

Jim Steinman photo
Ted Hughes photo

“The Shell

The sea fills my ear
with sand and with fear.

You may wash out the sand,
but never the sound
of the ghost of the sea
that is haunting me.”

Ted Hughes (1930–1998) English poet and children's writer

Source: The Mermaid's Purse: poems by Ted Hughes

Related topics