77 Joyce Carol Oates Quotes for You to Enjoy

Joyce Carol Oates

American Novelist

Born: Jun 16, 1938

Life Me People Time Writing You

Related authors: Elie Wiesel Ernest Hemingway H. P. Lovecraft James Baldwin John Updike Leo Rosten Nathaniel Hawthorne Richard Bach

For some reason, voters can be brainwashed, and they vote sometimes against their own best interests, let alone voting against the interests of people who need them, like people who are disenfranchised and people who are poor and so forth. Joyce Carol Oates

I should say, one of the things about being a widow or a widower, you really, really need a sense of humor, because everything's going to fall apart. Joyce Carol Oates

You Sense Of Humor Humor Fall Sense Everything Say One Of The Things About Because Going Being Apart Really Should Things Widow Need

Night comes to the desert all at once, as if someone turned off the light. Joyce Carol Oates

Nature Light Once Someone Off Turned Desert Night

I don't read for amusement, I read for enlightenment. I do a lot of reviewing, so I have a steady assignment of reading. I'm also a judge for the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards, which gives awards to literature and nonfiction. Joyce Carol Oates

Book Judge Reading Steady Gives Also Read Nonfiction Lot Reviewing Literature Which Awards Assignment Enlightenment Amusement

Mark Twain was very unhappy with himself for various reasons. He was very unhappy with America of this time. He thought it was terrible we had no anti-lynching laws, and he was also a feminist, and he was also very concerned with anti-Semitism. He was a good man, but he was hard on himself. Joyce Carol Oates

Time Good Man Unhappy Good Man Thought Anti-Semitism Mark Mark Twain Laws Various Various Reasons Had He Also Concerned Terrible Himself Feminist Very America Hard Twain Reasons

I'm drawn to failure. I feel like I'm contending with it constantly in my own life. Joyce Carol Oates

Life Failure Own Drawn Constantly My Own Feel Like Contending

We are all regionalists in our origins, however 'universal' our themes and characters, and without our cherished hometowns and childhood landscapes to nourish us, we would be like plants set in shallow soil. Our souls must take root - almost literally. Joyce Carol Oates

Plants Soil Our Characters Must Would Would-Be Shallow Take Almost Like Without Souls Cherished However Childhood Literally Themes Us Root Landscapes Nourish Origins Universal Set

Boxing is a celebration of the lost religion of masculinity all the more trenchant for its being lost. Joyce Carol Oates

Religion Sports Lost More Masculinity Boxing Celebration Being

My reputation for writing quickly and effortlessly notwithstanding, I am strongly in favor of intelligent, even fastidious revision, which is, or certainly should be, an art in itself. Joyce Carol Oates

Art Writing Reputation Favor Strongly Am Revision Itself Quickly Intelligent Effortlessly Which Should Certainly Notwithstanding Even Fastidious

We are linked by blood, and blood is memory without language. Joyce Carol Oates

Memory Language Without Blood Linked

I think all art comes out of conflict. When I write I am always looking for the dramatic kernel of an event, the junctures of people's lives when they go in one direction, not another. Joyce Carol Oates

Art Conflict People Looking Think Dramatic Out Direction Write Another Always Am Go Event Lives Kernel

If I'm writing, I'll say something metaphorical or approximate, whereas scientists are very precise. Joyce Carol Oates

Writing Say Approximate Something Metaphorical Scientists Very Precise Whereas

Primarily, 'Black Girl/White Girl' is the story of two very different, yet somehow 'fated' girls; for Genna, her 'friendship' with Minette is the most haunting of her life, though it is one-sided and ends in tragedy. Joyce Carol Oates

Life Friendship Black Girl Though One-Sided Somehow Haunting Primarily Most Tragedy Very Ends Different Story Her Two Fated

One writes to memorialize, and to bring to life again that which has been lost. Joyce Carol Oates

Life Lost Has-Been Writes Been Which Again Bring

I compose most of my tweets with care, as if they were aphorisms - they are not usually dashed-off. Sometimes I'm surprised by the high, poetic quality of Twitter - it lends itself to a surreal sort of self-expression. Joyce Carol Oates

Quality Sometimes Care Twitter High Compose Poetic Most Self-Expression Sort Were Surprised Surreal Itself Lends Aphorism Tweets

Boxing has become America's tragic theater. Joyce Carol Oates

Sports Become Boxing Tragic America Theater

To be knocked out doesn't mean what it seems. A boxer does not have to get up. Joyce Carol Oates

Out Seems Knocked Boxer Does Up Get Mean

If you are a writer you locate yourself behind a wall of silence and no matter what you are doing, driving a car or walking or doing housework you can still be writing, because you have that space. Joyce Carol Oates

Silence You Yourself Writing Matter Space Car Locate Writer Driving Because Housework Still Doing Walking Wall Behind

The worst cynicism: a belief in luck. Joyce Carol Oates

Luck Worst Cynicism Belief Chance

It is not her body that he wants but it is only through her body that he can take possession of another human being, so he must labor upon her body, he must enter her body, to make his claim. Joyce Carol Oates

Human Being Claim Possession Enter Must Only Through Take He Make Another His Labor Human Being Wants Body Her

Life and people are complex. A writer as an artist doesn't have the personality of a politician. We don't see the world that simply. Joyce Carol Oates

Life People Personality World Politician Complex See Writer Simply Artist

Joyce Carol Oates Quotes

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