Kingsley Amis Quotes

Famously, there's not really anywhere to go after nihilism. It's not progressing toward anything, it's a statement of outrage, however brilliant.

Humanity, you never had it from the beginning." That was my motto.

Nihilism is not only despair and negation, but above all the desire to despair and to negate.

Her last conscious thought was disgust at life; her senses had lied to her. The world was not made of energy and delight but of foulness, betrayal, and lassitude. Living was hateful, and death was no better, and from end to end of the universe this was the first and last and only truth.

There were days when she was unhappy, she did not know why,--when it did not seem worthwhile to be glad or sorry, to be alive or dead; when life appeared to her like a grotesque pandemonium and humanity like worms struggling blindly toward inevitable annihilation.

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

Cynicism stems from disappointment. Cynical and faithless people were not always like that. They were filled with possibilities and hope as kids. But they tried and perhaps failed.

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

Humanity, you never had it to begin with.

A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past; he is one who is prematurely disappointed in the future.

False hope really makes you cynical.

Nobody's happy. What's happy? Happiness is over when the lights come on." The older woman poured herself a glass of sangria. "Screw that," she said quietly. "What?" "Screw that. Wash your mouth out. Who taught you that half-assed existential drivel?

False optimism sooner or later means disillusionment , anger and hopelessness.

Everything is the same, nothing is worthwhile, the world is senseless, knowledge strangles.

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

As if at the age of eighteen life already sucked beyond any hope of improvement.

"Tell me, Tool, what dominates your thoughts?" The Imass shrugged before replying. "I think of futility, Adjunct." "Do all Imass think about futility?" "No. Few think at all." "Why is that?" The Imass leaned his head to one side and regarded her. "Because, Adjunct, it is futile."

There was nothing in this world that was not a con, suddenly I understood this. Nothing really mattered, and nothing could be lost.

Now, after so many years, I understand what the Coldness was and where it came from—this sense that everything is lost, and worthless, and meaningless.

Philosophy seems to me on the whole a rather hopeless business.

No; he could be ruined again and again by hope, but he would never be capable of belief.

I must confess that I lost faith in the sanity of the world

I asked her, "Are you an optimist or a pessimist?" She looked at her watch and said, "I'm optimistic." "Then I have some bad news for you, because humans are going to destroy each others as soon as it becomes easy enough to, which will be very soon." "Why do beautiful songs make you sad?" "Because they aren't true." "Never?" "Nothing is beautiful and true." She smiled, but in a way that wasn't just happy, and said, "You sound just like Dad.

In the world it is called Tolerance, but in hell it is called Despair...the sin that believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing, and remains alive because there is nothing for which it will die.