“The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there and the battlefield is the heart of man.”
― The Brothers Karamazov
― The Brothers Karamazov
“In most cases, people, even wicked people, are far more naive and simple-hearted than one generally assumes. And so are we.”
― The Brothers Karamazov
― The Brothers Karamazov
“I love mankind, he said, "but I find to my amazement that the more I love mankind as a whole, the less I love man in particular.”
― The Brothers Karamazov
― The Brothers Karamazov
“Above all, avoid lies, all lies, especially the lie to yourself. Keep watch on your own lie and examine it every hour, every minute. And avoid contempt, both of others and of yourself: what seems bad to you in yourself is purified by the very fact that you have noticed it in yourself. And avoid fear, though fear is simply the consequence of every lie. Never be frightened at your own faintheartedness in attaining love, and meanwhile do not even be very frightened by your own bad acts.”
― The Brothers Karamazov
― The Brothers Karamazov
“Alyosha's heart could not bear uncertainty, for the nature of his love was always active. He could not love passively; once he loved, he immediately also began to help.”
― The Brothers Karamazov
― The Brothers Karamazov
Toby’s 2025 Year in Books
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