Joseph Heller Quotes

I would no more admit the rebels to control these States than I would sail a ship with the mutinous part of a crew, and confine those who were faithful to the captain in the hold or put them in irons.

That would depend, sir, on whether I embraced your principles or your mistress.

I love the treason but hate the traitor.

I can not be a traitor, for I owe him no allegiance. He is not my Sovereign; he never received my homage; and whilst life is in this persecuted body, he never shall receive it.

In war you're either a collaborator or you're a resistor. I mean you don't get to be neutral.

Just because you’re on their side doesn’t mean they’re on your side.

When an artist deserts to the side of the angels, it is the most odious of treasons.

Oh, but Masha, can’t you see? You are. An Ivan has come. That is like saying, Midnight has struck. It is time for bed, little one. You cannot have both. In war you must always choose sides. One or the other. Silver or black. Human or demon. If you try to be a bridge laid down between them, they will tear you in half.

when you're honest with yourself, often times you betray someone else!

In a room sit three great men, a king, a priest, and a rich man with his gold. Between them stands a sellsword, a little man of common birth and no great mind. Each of the great ones bids him slay the other two. ‘Do it,’ says the king, ‘for I am your lawful ruler.’ ‘Do it,’ says the priest, ‘for I command you in the names of the gods.’ ‘Do it,’ says the rich man, ‘and all this gold shall be yours.’ So tell me—who lives and who dies?

There are but two parties now: traitors and patriots. And I want hereafter to be ranked with the latter and, I trust, the stronger party.

I cannot be a traitor, since I never swore fealty to the English king.

Zounds! sir, you are one of those that will not serve God if the devil bid you.

Kill me, and be cursed. You are no king of mine.

You can't kill us all, human.' He was right. I raised the machine gun a little. 'True, but who's going to be first in line?

Reyna sent me to get Percy," Frank said. "Did Octavian accept you?" "Yeah," Percy said. "He slaughtered my panda.

Guilt has always its horrors and solicitudes; and, to make it yet more shameful and detestable, it is doomed often to stand in awe of those to whom nothing could give influence or weight but their power of betraying.

I will be in my coffin before I will fight again under your command.

When you side with a man, you stay with him. And if you can't do that, you're like some animal. You're finished. We're finished. All of us.

Gale and I were thrown together by a mutual need to survive. Peeta and I know the other's survival means our own death. How do you side step that?

A furious Peeta hammers Haymitch with the atrocity he could become party to, but I can feel Haymitch watching me. This is the moment, then. When we find out exactly just how alike we are, and how much he truly understands me. "I'm with the Mockingjay," he says.

Many men are loved by their enemies, and hated by their friends, and are the friends of their enemies, and the enemies of their friends.

When it all comes down to dust I will kill you if I must , I will help you if I can. When it all comes down to dust I will help you if I must, I will kill you if I can.

When the enemy enthusiastically embraces you, and the fellow countrymen bitterly reject you, it is hard not to wonder if you are, in fact, a traitor.

My name is Cammie!” I didn’t think about all the people I could have woken, all the alarms that might have gone off. I just snapped, “How did you know about Boston? Why are you working with Mr. Solomon now? Are you my friend or are you my enemy, Zach? Or, wait, let me guess, you can’t tell me.