“Strong blasphemers thrive only when strong believers thrive.”
Grandpa Winnegan
Riders of the Purple Wage (1967)
“One can only blaspheme if one believes.”
—
W. H. Auden
,
book
Forewords and Afterwords
"Concerning the Unpredictable", p. 472
Forewords and Afterwords (1973)
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W. H. Auden 122
Anglo-American poet 1907–1973Related quotes
“What is the use of believing, if the dost blaspheme?”
Aurelius Augustinus
(354–430) early Christian theologian and philosopher
On the Mystical Body of Christ
Context: What is the use of believing, if the dost blaspheme? Thou adorest Him as Head, and dost blaspheme Him in His body. He loves His body. Thou canst cut thyself off from the body, but the Head does not detach itself from its body. "Thou dost honor me in vain," He cries from heaven, "thou dost honor Me in vain!" If someone wished to kiss thy cheek, but insisted at the same time on trampling thy feet; if with his hailed boots he were to crush thy feet as he tries to hold thy head and kiss thee, wouldst thou not interrupt his expression of respect and cry out: "What are thou doing, man? Thou art trampling upon me!" …
It is for this reason that before He ascended into heaven our Lord Jesus Christ recommended to us His body, by which He was to remain upon earth. For He foresaw that many would pay Him homage because of His glory in heaven, but that their homage would be vain, so long as they despise His members on earth. (pp. 436-437) http://books.google.com/books?id=CIosAAAAIAAJ&q=%22their+homage+would+be+vain,+so+long+as+they+despise+His+members+on+earth%22&dq=%22their+homage+would+be+vain,+so+long+as+they+despise+His+members+on+earth%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=3AIXUd70C4mi8QTi2IC4Cg&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA
“One can only believe entirely, perhaps, in what one cannot see.”
Ch. 4
Source: Something, perhaps, we must believe in, and as Orlando, we have said, had no belief in the usual divinities she bestowed her credulity upon great men — yet with a distinction. Admirals, soldiers, statesmen, moved her not at all. But the very thought of a great writer stirred her to such a pitch of belief that she almost believed him to be invisible. Her instinct was a sound one. One can only believe entirely, perhaps, in what one cannot see.
Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel
(1772–1829) German poet, critic and scholar
“Selected Aphorisms from the Athenaeum (1798)”, Dialogue on Poetry and Literary Aphorisms, Ernst Behler and Roman Struc, trans. (Pennsylvania University Press:1968) #54
Athenäum (1798 - 1800)
“…… When one loves, one is only too ready to believe one's love returned.”
Alexandre Dumas
(1802–1870) French writer and dramatist, father of the homonym writer and dramatist
Source: CliffsNotes on Dumas's The Three Musketeers
“Would you believe in what you believe in if you were the only one who believed it?”
Kanye West
(1977) American rapper, singer and songwriter
Source: p.19 Thank You and You're Welcome (2009)
Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell
(1883–1950) senior officer of the British Army
Introduction by Wavell to…
Clarke D. (1948). Seven Assignments. Jonathan Cape. p. 7.
“I believe one writes because one has to create a world in which one can live.”
Anaïs Nin
(1903–1977) writer of novels, short stories, and erotica
February 1954 The Diary of Anaïs Nin Vol. 5 (1947-1955), as quoted in Woman as Writer (1978) by Jeannette L. Webber and Joan Grumman, p. 38
Diary entries (1914 - 1974)
Context: Why one writes is a question I can answer easily, having so often asked it of myself. I believe one writes because one has to create a world in which one can live. I could not live in any of the worlds offered to me — the world of my parents, the world of war, the world of politics. I had to create a world of my own, like a climate, a country, an atmosphere in which I could breathe, reign, and recreate myself when destroyed by living. That, I believe, is the reason for every work of art.
