Burton Raffel > Quotes

“Quickly, the dragon came at him, encouraged
As Beowulf fell back; its breath flared,
And he suffered, wrapped around in swirling
Flames -- a king, before, but now
A beaten warrior. None of his comrades
Came to him, helped him, his brave and noble
Followers; they ran for their lives, fled
Deep in a wood. And only one of them
Remained, stood there, miserable, remembering,
As a good man must, what kinship should mean.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“Fate will unwind as it must!”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“I’ve never known fear; as a youth I fought/ In endless battles. I am old, now,/ But I will fight again, seek fame still,/ If the dragon hiding in his tower dares/ To face me”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“Beloved Beowulf, remember how you boasted,
Once, that nothing in the world would ever
Destroy your fame; fight to keep it,
Now, be strong and brave, my noble
King, protecting life and fame
Together. My sword will fight at your side!”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“That struggle was too strong,
hateful and long-lasting, which had come on the people,
dire wrack and ruin - the greatest of night-evils.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“Art does not have to be dull, to be effective; the artist does not have to be a bore, to be real.”
― Burton Raffel, 41 Stories

“Battle is a way of life, a necessary function of the worthiest members of society.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“The good fighter, the hero, the man who wins the most precious of all treasures, fame, is the man who never gives up, and who does not worry about the possible consequences of bravery”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“Strength and courage are basic virtues for both followed and follower.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“His vanity swelled him so vile and rank
That he could hear no voice but his own. He deserved to suffer and die.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf

“The Gawain-poet can do an incredible number of things in brilliant style. His sensibility is both delicate and powerful, as is his language; he can sing like a choirboy or like an angry blacksmith; he can draw characters so vividly that they breathe, he can paint pictures so vitally that one sees them, almost feels them. He can weave a compelling and tightly organized plot out of disparate and sometimes fragile elements; he can be passionaltely moral; he can be wickedly comic.”
― Burton Raffel, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

“So should all men raise up words for their lords, warm with love, when their shield and protector leaves his body behind, sends his soul on high.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf with Related Readings

“Ode I.11

Leucon, no one's allowed to know his fate,
Not you, not me: don't ask, don't hunt for answers
In tea leaves or palms. Be patient with whatever comes.
This could be our last winter, it could be many
More, pounding the Tuscan Sea on these rocks:
Do what you must, be wise, cut your vines
And forget about hope. Time goes running, even
As we talk. Take the present, the future's no one's affair”
― Burton Raffel, The Essential Horace: Odes, Epodes, Satires and Epistles

“PLATO A CAUTIONARY TALE He lost his gold, And he, finding the first man’s gold, Lost his belt, And then he who lost his gold Found the other man’s belt And hanged himself.”
― Burton Raffel, Pure Pagan: Seven Centuries of Greek Poems and Fragments

“Deck timbers creaked, and the wind billowing through the sail stretched from the mast, tied tight with ropes, did not hold them back, did not keep the ring-prowed ship from foaming swiftly through the waves, the sea currents, across the wide ocean.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf with Related Readings

“Then God’s bright beacon appeared in the east, the water lay still, and at last I could see the land, wind-swept Cliff-walls at the edge of the coast.”
― Burton Raffel, Beowulf with Related Readings

“So time flows slow and worthless
If it keeps me from understanding
What I need, what I want”
― Burton Raffel, The Essential Horace: Odes, Epodes, Satires and Epistles

“The Gawain-poet can do an incredible number of things in brilliant style. His sensibility is both dielcate and powerful, as is his language; he can sing like a choirboy or like an angry blacksmith; he can draw characters so vividly that they breathe, he can paint pictures so vitally that one sees them, almost feels them. He can weave a compelling and tightly organized plot out of disparate and sometimes fragile elements; he can be passionaltely moral; he can be wickedly comic.”
― Burton Raffel, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

“EUROPA Europa costs you a dollar. No one cares, Including her. She’s got clean sheets And a fire in winter. Why bother Becoming a bull, O Zeus!”
― Burton Raffel, Pure Pagan: Seven Centuries of Greek Poems and Fragments