Russell Banks
"I suppose some things seem obscure, Mister Brown, but really, they're quite obvious, aren't they' said Mr. Forbes. 'Once they've been pointed out, of course. Either by genius before the fact, or, as is more often the case, after the fact by disaster. Don't you think so?... For instance, Mr. Brown, here's some after-the-fact wisdom, if you like. Taken from the Italian campaign. Taught by disaster.' The smaller force, he said, had of necessity always to be made of men who, though they believed many things, must believe but two. Number one, each soldier must believe that he is engaged in a struggle in which he and his comrades are morally right and their opposition is morally wrong. No middle way. No room to negotiate a compromise. It couldn't be a simple dispute over land. Basic principles, not mere borders, must be at stake. And number two, he must believe that he is fighting for his own life and for the lives of his loved ones. So that the only imaginable alternative to his participating in this dreadful war is death for him and his loved ones. No going home for a season to harvest the olives and the grapes."
7 Quotes
"I suppose some things seem obscure, Mister Brown, but really, they're quite obvious, aren't they' said Mr. Forbes. 'Once they've been pointed out, of course. Either by genius before the fact, or, as is more often the case, after the fact by disaster. Don't you think so?... For instance, Mr. Brown, here's some after-the-fact wisdom, if you like. Taken from the Italian campaign. Taught by disaster.' The smaller force, he said, had of necessity always to be made of men who, though they believed many things, must believe but two. Number one, each soldier must believe that he is engaged in a struggle in which he and his comrades are morally right and their opposition is morally wrong. No middle way. No room to negotiate a compromise. It couldn't be a simple dispute over land. Basic principles, not mere borders, must be at stake. And number two, he must believe that he is fighting for his own life and for the lives of his loved ones. So that the only imaginable alternative to his participating in this dreadful war is death for him and his loved ones. No going home for a season to harvest the olives and the grapes."
"أفترض أن بعض الأمور تبدو غامضة، سيد براون، لكنها في الحقيقة واضحة تمامًا، أليس كذلك؟" قال السيد فوربس. "متى ما أُشير إليها، بطبيعة الحال. إما بعبقرية تستبق الحدث، أو، وكما هو الحال غالبًا، بكارثة تليه. ألا ترى ذلك؟... على سبيل المثال، سيد براون، إليك حكمة ما بعد الواقع، إن شئت. مستقاة من الحملة الإيطالية. لقنتها الكارثة."
"القوة الأصغر، كما قال، كان لا بد لها دائمًا أن تتألف من رجال، وإن آمنوا بأشياء كثيرة، فلا بد أن يؤمنوا باثنين فقط. أولاً، يجب على كل جندي أن يؤمن بأنه يخوض صراعًا هو ورفاقه فيه على حق أخلاقي، وأن خصومهم على باطل أخلاقي. لا سبيل للحلول الوسط. لا مجال للتفاوض على تسوية. لا يمكن أن يكون مجرد نزاع على أرض. بل يجب أن تكون المبادئ الأساسية، لا مجرد الحدود، هي الرهان. وثانيًا، يجب أن يؤمن بأنه يقاتل من أجل حياته وحياة أحبائه. بحيث يكون البديل الوحيد المتصور لمشاركته في هذه الحرب الرهيبة هو الموت له ولأحبائه. لا عودة إلى الديار لموسم قطف الزيتون والعنب."
Russell Banks
Cloudsplitter
"Go, my book, and help destroy the world as it is."
"اذهب يا كتابي، وساهم في تدمير العالم كما هو قائم."
Russell Banks
Continental Drift
"He said, "Yeah, well, artists are a lot like gangsters. They both know that the official version, the one everyone else believes, is a lie."
Russell Banks
"Public libraries are the sole community centers left in America. The degree to which a branch of the local library is connected to the larger culture is a reflection of the degree to which the community itself is connected to the larger culture."
Russell Banks
"A tattoo does that, it makes you think about your body like it's this special suit that you can put on or take off whenever you want and a new name if it's cool enough does the same thing. To have both at once is power. It's the kind of power as all those superheroes who have secret identities get from being able to change back and forth from one person into another. No matter who you think he is, man, the dude is always somebody else."
Russell Banks
"If you dedicate your attention to discipline in your life you become smarter while you are writing than while you are hanging out with your pals or in any other line of work."
Russell Banks
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