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John Cheever

10 quotes

The quotes of John Cheever have been shared, printed, and passed along for good reason. The range of their thinking — from Wisdom to Strength — speaks to an intellectual restlessness that shows in every quote. 14 of John Cheever's sharpest quotes live here, spanning themes of Wisdom, Strength, Knowledge, Society, and Morning. One standout: "All literary men are Red Sox fans - to be a Yankee fan in a literate society is to endanger your life."

“For me, a page of good prose is where one hears the rain and the noise of battle. It has the power to give grief or universality that lends it a youthful beauty.”

— John Cheever

Beauty

All Quotes by John Cheever

“It was a splendid summer morning and it seemed as if nothing could go wrong.”

— John Cheever

Morning

“Homesickness is nothing. Fifty percent of the people in the world are homesick all the time.”

— John Cheever

Home

“Fear tastes like a rusty knife and do not let her into your house.”

— John Cheever

Fear

“The need to write comes from the need to make sense of one's life and discover one's usefulness.”

— John Cheever

Communication

“When I remember my family, I always remember their backs. They were always indignantly leaving places.”

— John Cheever

Family

“Wisdom we know is the knowledge of good and evil, not the strength to choose between the two.”

— John Cheever

Knowledge

“Wisdom is the knowledge of good and evil, not the strength to choose between the two.”

— John Cheever

Knowledge

“For me, a page of good prose is where one hears the rain and the noise of battle. It has the power to give grief or universality that lends it a youthful beauty.”

— John Cheever

Beauty

“I can't write without a reader. It's precisely like a kiss - you can't do it alone.”

— John Cheever

Alone

“All literary men are Red Sox fans - to be a Yankee fan in a literate society is to endanger your life.”

— John Cheever

Society