“You never kill any one that you want to kill in a war.”
Ernest Hemingway
For Whom the Bell Tolls (Primary source)
Ernest Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls, published in 1940, is a powerful and introspective novel set during the Spanish Civil War. The story follows Robert Jordan, an American volunteer fighting with the anti-fascist Republican forces. As a dynamiter assigned to blow up a bridge critical to an upcoming Republican offensive, Jordan’s mission becomes a lens through which Hemingway explores themes of duty, sacrifice, love, death, and the complex nature of war.
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“You never kill any one that you want to kill in a war, he said to himself. Well, hardly ever, he amended and went on reading the letters.”
Ernest Hemingway
“The world is a fine place and worth the fighting for and I hate very much to leave it.”
— Ernest Hemingway Primary source“Never to go on trips with anyone you do not love.”
— Ernest Hemingway Primary source“But man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated.”
— Ernest Hemingway Primary source“How did you go bankrupt?” Bill asked. “Two ways,” Mike said. “Gradually and then suddenly.”
— Ernest Hemingway Primary sourceMore quotes by Ernest Hemingway →
“Anger is never without a reason, but seldom with a good one.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“If you want a faithful servant, and one that you like—serve yourself.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“If you want to be wealthy, think of saving as well as of earning.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“A Prince, criticised by his subjects, should never attempt to justify himself to them.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte Disputed