Звездан Звеки

“Čovjek je životinja u svojoj pojedinačnoj osamljenosti savršeno tužna, u prirodi, moglo bi se reći, gotovo deplasirana! U stadu živeći već prilično dugo, čovjek je čovjeku čovjek, okrutniji naime od svake druge zvijeri. Bestidna, lažljiva, glupa, zlobna i majmunska zvijer! Najsmješnija među životinjskim vrstama je sigurno vrsta majmunska, a koliko je majmun bliži neposrednom i logičnom životu od čovjeka? Poslije opice (koja u svakom pogledu zaostaje za drugim životinjama), čovjek je životinja najmajmunskija! Ta zvijer je proždrljivija od hijene, jer hijena prežderana strvinom može pokraj smrdljivog mesa da zaspi, dok čovjek, koji se prežderao toliko, da mu se od sitosti diže utroba - još uvijek ždere i, promatrajući oko sebe druge, gladne, sebi slične životinje, oblizuje se zadovoljno.”
― Miroslav Krleža, The Return of Philip Latinowicz

“Kaz leaned back. "What's the easiest way to steal a man's wallet?"
"Knife to the throat?" asked Inej.
"Gun to the back?" said Jesper.
"Poison in his cup?" suggested Nina.
"You're all horrible," said Matthias.”
― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

“Written in ink, in German, in a small, hopelessly sincere handwriting, were the words "Dear God, life is hell." Nothing led up to or away from it. Alone on the page, and in the sickly stillness of the room, the words appeared to have the stature of an uncontestable, even classic indictment. X stared at the page for several minutes, trying, against heavy odds, not to be taken in. Then, with far more zeal than he had done anything in weeks, he picked up a pencil stub and wrote down under the inscription, in English, "Fathers and teachers, I ponder, 'What is Hell?' I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love.”
― J.D. Salinger, Nine Stories

“I want freedom, the right to self-expression, everybody's right to beautiful, radiant things.' Anarchism meant that to me, and I would live it in spite of the whole world — prisons, persecution, everything. Yes, even in spite of the condemnation of my own closest comrades I would live my beautiful ideal.”
― Emma Goldman, Living My Life