Larry McMurtry Quotes

I am tired of a life of contention, and of being the personal object for the hatred of every man, who hates the present state of things.

I would get in fights a lot. My voice was so heavy, kids would say you sound like a boy, so I would start beating them up.

I wasn't a bad kid. I was a good kid. But I had gotten in a lot of fights 'cause in the neighborhood I grew up in, that wasn't equated with bad behavior almost. I mean, we'd fought like it was another game. 'You wanna play stick ball today?' 'Nah, let's go fight.'

Don’t swear; fight!

I don't like to yell and scream. I actually hate it.

I like fighting, but I hate hurting people.

I have a sack of hate mail that I want to respond to. One day, when I’m tired or tipsy, I will respond and tell them what I think.

When I was a small boy, if we had a problem, we would fight about it with our fists. We wouldn't shoot somebody, killing them or wounding them. That's not hard to do. I would like people to put down the guns. If you have a problem, talk about it or fight about it.

Hate is a fear, and fear is rot That cankers root and fruit alike, Fight cleanly then, hate not, fear not, Strike with no madness when you strike.

I would rather fight with my hands than my tongue.

I'm all done with hating you. It's all washed out of me. I hate people hard, but I don't hate them very long.

Kill if you must, but never hate: Man is but grass and hate is blight, The sun will scorch you soon or late, Die wholesome then, since you must fight

This whole literary game of trying to put yourself in the shoes of your opponent is good for everybody. It leaves you more open-hearted, it gives you a more accurate vision of the other person, because it's more based on curiosity than projection. In the end if you do have to fight, you're better equipped to fight. Also it doesn't leave you damaged at the end, it doesn't leave you hateful or malformed by your own anger.

"In Africa," S. B. once remarked, "if you do well, people close to you will hate you."

I told you I didn't want to fight with Charlie." "Nobody said that you had to." I glowered at him. "I can't help myself when he gets all bossy like that―my natural teenage instincts overpower me.

Anyone can battle for pride, power, vanity, greed, or hate, but war should always be approached with an equal measure of wisdom and strength. It's not just enough to know when to fight, but to know when to lay down the sword and negotiate. Not everything in the world is worth fighting for.

I'm not starting any fights. I might finish one though.

When a guy has his ego hurt, he's liable to jump into a fight he doesn't need to have.

I fight with emotion, but I don't fight with anger. I could be angry, but I'm not going to fight with anger because when you fight with anger you can make mistakes.

I'm too tired to hate.

In a fight almost anything goes. It almost reaches the point where you stop to apologize if a chance blow lands above the belt.

I have too much potential for collapse. There's an anonymity that makes people feel safe to participate in hatefulness. I like a good old-fashioned fistfight if people are pissed off at each other. I just feel like if you're really mad and want to have a fight, then put your dukes up.

The worst-tempered people I've ever met were people who knew they were wrong.

Aggression means emotions. Emotions means you’re gonna get off your plan and that means you’ll lose the fight.

When I was a kid I got mad enough to want to kill somebody but as you travel the world and I'm struggling with a freedom fight against nations, you can't get enough hate in you to be mad at one man just because it's a boxing match. Never. Even Floyd Paterson, who condemned my Islamic religion and didn't want to call me Muhammad Ali and said I should've gone to the army and I should be in jail.