We are not forced into unpleasant activities. We either allow them to come about or we encourage them to come about. William Saroyan More Quotes by William Saroyan More Quotes From William Saroyan The events of life have never fallen into the form of the short story or the form of the poem, or into any other form.Yourown consciousnessisthe only formyouneed. William Saroyan eventsformstories All things lie dark in possibility. William Saroyan darklifelying Standing at the edge of our city, a man could feel that we had made this place of streets and dwellings in the stillness of the desert, and that we had done a brave thing... Or a man could feel that we had made this city in the desert and that it was a fake thing and that our lives were empty lives, and that we were the contemporaries of the jack rabbits. William Saroyan empty-lifecitiesmen Encourage virtue in whatever heart it may have been driven into secrecy and sorrow by the shame and terror of the world. William Saroyan sorrowheartworld Art is what is irresistible. William Saroyan art-isirresistibleart Human greatness is a rather difficult thing to account for, and more often than not one is mistaken in one's hunches about somebody one has met. William Saroyan hunchesmetsgreatness I can't decide for you whether or not you have got to write, but if anything in the world, war, or pestilence, or famine, or private hunger, or anything, can stop you from writing, then don't write . . . because if anything can even begin to keep you from writing you aren't a writer and you'll be in a hell of a mess until you find out. If you are a writer, you'll still be in a hell of a mess, but you'll have better reasons. William Saroyan writingwarworld Remember that every man is a variation of yourself. No man's guilt is not yours, nor is any man's innocence a thing apart. William Saroyan variationguiltmen What can I tell you, except the stupid little I know? William Saroyan stupidknowslittles Nobody, but nobody, is going to tell me I'm not the most. I am. I was the most when everybody else was struggling bitterly to become a little. William Saroyan struggleselflittles What is a street? It is where the living weep, where the dead go off in silence to their peace. William Saroyan streetssilence I cannot see the war as historians see it. Those clever fellows study all the facts and they see the war as a large thing, one of the biggest events in the legend of the man, something general, involving multitudes. William Saroyan clevermenwar Americans still believe they are cut out to be successful-in everything: love, love-making, luck, luck-giving, money-making, sense-making, cancer-avoiding, clothes-wearing, car-driving, and so on. William Saroyan cancercuttingbelieve It is impossible not to notice that our world is tormented by failure, hate, guilt, and fear. William Saroyan our-worldhatefear Lionel whispered because he was under the impression that it was out of respect for books, not consideration for readers. William Saroyan considerationimpressionbook Indians are born with an instinct for riding, rowing, hunting, fishing, and swimming. Americans are born with an instinct for fooling around with machines. William Saroyan huntingswimmingfishing There is little pride in writers. They know they are human and shall some day die and be forgotten. Knowing all this a writer is gentle and kindly where another man is severe and unkind. William Saroyan prideknowingmen I see life as one life at one time, so many millions simultaneously, all over the earth. William Saroyan one-timeearthtime To Armenians, half Armenians, quarter Armenians, and one-eight Armenians. Sixteen and thirty-second Armenians, and other winners, are likelier to be happy with a useful book William Saroyan eighthalfbook I used to throw things out, saying, 'This isn't great.' It didn't occur to me that it didn't have to be great. William Saroyan used
