Our lives are awkward and fragile and we have only one thing to keep us sane: pity, and the man without pity is mad. Edward Bond More Quotes by Edward Bond More Quotes From Edward Bond I think there is no world without theatre. Edward Bond theatre literature thinking If you engage people on a vital, important level, they will respond. Edward Bond engagement important people I write about violence as naturally as Jane Austen wrote about manners. Violence shapes and obsesses our society, and if we do not stop being violent we have no future. Edward Bond negativity shapes writing In the end I think theatre has only one subject: justice Edward Bond theatre justice thinking All you now do is pursue your private objectives within society. Instead of us being a community, everybody is asked to seek their own personal ends. It's called competition. And competition is antagonism. Edward Bond competition community ends It's politely assumed that democracy is a means of containing and restraining violence. But violence comes not from genes but from ideas Edward Bond democracy mean ideas The Greeks said very, very extreme things in their tragedies. Edward Bond tragedy greek said Religion enabled society to organise itself to debate goodness, just as Greek drama had once done. Edward Bond done greek drama The human mind is a dramatic structure in itself and our society is absolutely saturated with drama Edward Bond literature mind drama Law and order is one of the steps taken to maintain injustice. Edward Bond taken law order In the past goodness was always a collective experience. Then goodness became privatised. Edward Bond goodness literature past Art is the expression of the conviction that we can have a rational relationship with the world and each other. It isn't the faith or hope that we can, it is the demonstration that we can. Edward Bond expression world art We may seem competent, but by the end of next century there will be new deserts, new ruins. Edward Bond desert insecurity literature Humanity's become a product and when humanity is a product, you get Auschwitz and you get Chair. Edward Bond chairs literature humanity Our unconscious is not more animal than our conscious, it is often even more human Edward Bond conscious literature animal I don't think it's the job of theatre at the moment to provide political propaganda; that would be simplistic. We have to explore our situation further before we will understand it. Edward Bond political jobs thinking As Shakespeare himself knew, the peace, the reconciliation that he created on the stage would not last an hour on the street. Edward Bond hours stage lasts But we are not in the world to be good but to change it. Edward Bond be-good world Art is the close scrutiny of reality and therefore I put on the stage only those things that I know happen in our society. Edward Bond literature reality art Now, drama is quite useful at helping us to understand what our position is and, conversely, we might then understand why our theatre is being destroyed Edward Bond theatre literature drama