E. M. Forster Quotes

They are focused on whether they can do something. They never think whether they should do something.

The real question is: How do you react? What do you do next? Evade responsibilities? Bury yourself in work? What do you do? All three of my novels take up that question, although none gives an answer.

A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.

He that will enjoy the brightness of sunshine, must quit the coolness of the shade.

I stand in the sunny noon of life. Objects no longer glitter in the dews of morning, neither are yet softened by the shadows of evening.

Its when the sun shines the brightest that our shadows appear the biggest

For what you do to others, you do to yourself.

I've got a pretty good idea what children are, and we're not children. Children can lose sometimes, and nobody cares.

I put myself in a position of authority where if I get judged, I get scrutinized. So if I get caught slipping, than I have to reap the repercussions of it. That is the game I’m in and people will judge you, you just have to get over it.

It must be the ultimate punishment, don't you think, to finally gain wisdom, only to realize that the consequences of your actions are irrevocable?

It's better to make a mistake with the full force of your being than to timidly avoid mistakes with a trembling spirit. Responsibility means recognizing both pleasure and price, action and consequence, then making a choice.

You can't have intentions without consequences. The question is, who pays for the consequences? Saving fish from drowning. Same thing. Who’s saved? Who’s not?

Look at a child and realize that their future is in your hands. It's not just those who will be here fifty years from now. The decisions we make in the next ten years will shape the next 10,000 years.

There's a moment for everyone when you fall into your own shadow and the fact is that it's your shadow and you're forced to live in it. And this is nothing to celebrate or not celebrate. It simply is.

Who... who are you?' I asked at last. It was true. I had left a body in the park, but seriously, what was I supposed to do? Drag him back to my hotel and tell my bellhop my friend had had too much to drink?

We are not responsible for what we do; we are ignorant of our acts until we accomplish them.

It's part of what we call the Shadow, all the dark parts of us we can't face. It's the thing that, if we don't deal with it, eventually poisons our lives.

The right to do something doesn't mean it's the right thing to do.

Rash oaths, whether kept or broken, frequently produce guilt.

A sign of wisdom and maturity is when you come to terms with the realization that your decisions cause your rewards and consequences. You are responsible for your life, and your ultimate success depends on the choices you make.

I've always taken my hangovers as consequence, not as a punishment.

I am myself and what is around me, and if I do not save it, it shall not save me.

For the next century, we've got to put together what we so carelessly tore apart with so little concern for those who were gonna follow us. ... You've got to sound off.

Well there's a line that you must toe and it'll soon be time to go but it's darker than you know in those Complicated Shadows