“The past is never dead. It's not even past.”

—  William Faulkner , book Requiem for a Nun

Act 1, sc. 3; this has sometimes been paraphrased or misquoted as "The past isn't over. It isn't even past."
Source: Requiem for a Nun (1951)

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update Oct. 27, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "The past is never dead. It's not even past." by William Faulkner?
William Faulkner photo
William Faulkner 214
American writer 1897–1962

Related quotes

Richard Wilbur photo

“I dreamt the past was never past redeeming:
But whether this was false or honest dreaming
I beg death's pardon now. And mourn the dead.”

Richard Wilbur (1921–2017) American poet

The Pardon
Context: I started in to cry and call his name,
Asking forgiveness of his tongueless head.
... I dreamt the past was never past redeeming:
But whether this was false or honest dreaming
I beg death's pardon now. And mourn the dead.

Charles Kingsley photo

“Some say that the age of chivalry is past, that the spirit of romance is dead. The age of chivalry is never past, so long as there is a wrong left unredressed on earth.”

Charles Kingsley (1819–1875) English clergyman, historian and novelist
Nathaniel Hawthorne photo

“Shall we never never get rid of this Past?… It lies upon the Present like a giant's dead body.”

Nathaniel Hawthorne book The House of the Seven Gables

Source: The House of the Seven Gables

José Ortega Y Gasset photo

“To remain in the past means to be dead.”

José Ortega Y Gasset (1883–1955) Spanish liberal philosopher and essayist
Anna Akhmatova photo

“As the future ripens in the past,
so the past rots in the future --
a terrible festival of dead leaves.”

Anna Akhmatova (1889–1966) Russian modernist poet

Source: Poems of Akhmatova

Camille Paglia photo

“We live in the age of idols. The pagan past, never dead, flames again in our mystic hierarchies of stardom.”

Camille Paglia (1947) American writer

As quoted in "Babylon Nights : A David Spandau Novel" (2010) by Daniel Depp
Context: Popular culture is the new Babylon, into which so much art and intellect now flow. It is our imperial sex theater, supreme temple of the western eye. We live in the age of idols. The pagan past, never dead, flames again in our mystic hierarchies of stardom.

Cyril Connolly photo

“The past is the only dead thing that smells sweet.”

Cyril Connolly (1903–1974) British author

Edward Thomas, "Early One Morning" from Poems (1917) http://www.richmondreview.co.uk/library/thomas04.html#five
Misattributed

Sophia Loren photo

“I've never tried to block out the memories of the past, even though some are painful.”

Sophia Loren (1934) Italian actress

As quoted in Valentines & Vitriol (1977) by Rex Reed
Context: I've never tried to block out the memories of the past, even though some are painful. I don't understand people who hide from their past. Everything you live through helps to make you the person you are now.

Sarah Dessen photo

“Your past is always your past. Even if you forget it, it remembers you.”

Sarah Dessen book What Happened to Goodbye

What Happened To Goodbye (2011)
Source: What Happened to Goodbye

Related topics