I believe that every life , irrespective of its events and setting, holds something of unique value, which it should be possible to communicate, if only one can first see one's experiences honestly and then set them down without too… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
I believe, not theoretically, but from direct personal experience, that very few of the things that happen to us are purposeless or accidental (and this includes suffering and grief - even that of others), and that sometimes one catches a… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
Just as, in travel, one may miss seeing the sunset because one cannot find the ticket-office or is afraid of missing the train, so… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
I write because, exacting as it may be to do so, it is still more difficult to refrain, and because - however conscious of… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
I believe that every life , irrespective of its events and setting, holds something of unique value, which it should be possible to communicate,… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
[On writing biography:] ... every human life is at once so complex and so simple, so perplexing and so clear, so superficial and so… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
Behind each biography there should always be a rich treasury of unformulated knowledge, a tapestry that has not been unrolled. — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
We are being governed by the dregs of the nation - and their brutality is so capricious that no one can feel certain that… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
whereas in childhood ... it was the parents' judgement that mattered to the child, later on the situation becomes reversed: it is then that… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
while it is certainly the biographer's business to describe the foibles, passions and idiosyncrasies which make his subject a person, his work will be… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
I do not think that one is likely to write a good biography unless one feels some sympathy with its subject. — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
I believe, not theoretically, but from direct personal experience, that very few of the things that happen to us are purposeless or accidental (and… — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
The biographer's real business - if it is not too arrogant to say so - is simply this: to bring the dead to life. — Iris Origo Copy Share Image
[On writing biography:] If you wish to see a person you must not start by seeing through him. — Iris Origo Copy Share Image