Ann Patchett Quotes

Pessimism drops the curtain on tomorrow.

I don't like hope very much. In fact, I hate it. It's the crystal meth of emotions. It hooks you fast and kills you hard. It's bad news. The worst. It's sharp sticks and cherry bombs. When hope shows up, it's only a matter of time until someone gets hurt.

If there is a chronic infirmity by which every teacher ought to be afflicted, it is, indeed, hope.

I'm a total pessimist.

I'm a massive pessimist.

I'm a pessimist.

False hope really makes you cynical.

I just don't have a lick of optimism left in me.

In a world that's ugly and a lie, it's hard to even want to try.

How happy are the pessimists! What joy is theirs when they have proved there is no joy.

I, myself, often wished to be spared the expectation of better days ahead or such.

Hope is the most hopeless thing of all.

Cynicism is a form of cowardice, a failure of courage to hope.

Scratch any cynic and you will find a disappointed idealist.

Pessimism is the affectation of youth, the reality of age.

Yeah, it's pretty hard not to be completely cynical these days.

I don't know whether I'm misanthropic. It seems to me I'm constantly disappointed. I'm very easily disappointed.

Pessimists are the people who have no hope for themselves or for others. Pessimists are also people who think the human race is beneath their notice, that they're better than other human beings.

I find nothing more depressing than optimism.

I don't think the world is a particularly pleasant place.

I think by now I have made it fairly clear that I am not very happy with the word hope. I don't believe in people just hoping.

I found, when I left, that there were others who felt the same way. We'd meet, they'd come and seek me out, we'd talk about the future. And I found that their depression and pessimism was every bit as acute as mine.

The single biggest surprise about arriving to the Senate is the defeatist attitude here.

I do get cynical, but what can you do? It doesn't make any difference.

Pessimists are born, true, but they also can be made.