East of Eden (novel) Quotes

“All the names but one in here have two dates.”

“A man's mind can't stay in time the way his body does.”

“We think of strangers as stronger and better than we are.”

“Can you think that whatever made us — would stop trying?”

“Yes, memory. Without that, time would be unarmed against us.”

“There are no ugly questions except those clothed in condescension.”

“"Where is he?" "How do I know?" said Cal. "Am I supposed to look after him?"”

“Maybe you're playing a part on a great stage with only yourself as audience.”

“And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good.”

“There's that fallow land, and here beside me is that fallow man. It seems a waste.”

“They were not pure, but they had a potential of purity, like a soiled white shirt.”

“Eventlessness has no posts to drape duration on. From nothing to nothing is no time at all.”

“. . . it is true of the spirit as it is true of battles -- only the winners are remembered.”

“It was well known that Liza Hamilton and the Lord God held similar convictions on nearly every subject.”

“With a few exceptions people don't want money. They want luxury and they want love and they want admiration.”

“I am incomparably, incredibly, overwhelmingly glad to be home. I've never been so goddamn lonesome in my life.”

“Once he had accepted the end as desirable, he should forget it completely and concentrate solely on the means.”

“Wikipedia: East of Eden (novel)”

“I have wondered why is it that some people are less affected and torn by the verities of life and death than others.”

“Is it true that when you love a woman you are never sure — never sure of her because you aren’t sure of yourself?”