--- title: "22 Way Quotes By Gore Vidal" description: "22 Way quotes by Gore Vidal. Plus more from Gore Vidal and more Way sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/870/gore-vidal-466_enemy_never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way-166_1660445.jpg" --- > [Never offend an enemy in a small way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/870/gore-vidal-466_enemy_never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way-166_1660445.jpg) > [The most interesting thing about writing is the way that it obliterates time. Three hours seem like three minutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-most-interesting-thing-about-writing-is-the-way-that-it-2/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d94/gore-vidal-466_hours_the-most-interesting-thing-about-writing_2769736.jpg) > [I am an obsessive rewriter, doing one draft and then another and another, usually five. In a way, I have nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-am-an-obsessive-rewriter-doing-one-draft-and-then-another-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c2c/gore-vidal-466_add_i-am-an-obsessive-rewriter-doing-one-dra_2500725.jpg) > [Religions are manipulated in order to serve those who govern society and not the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/religions-are-manipulated-in-order-to-serve-those-who-govern-society/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e4/gore-vidal-466_inspirational_religions-are-manipulated-in-order-to-se_2191772.jpg) > [Sex is a continuum. You go through different phases along life's way... and if you don't, you've been sort of cheated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-different-phases-along-life-s-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c94/gore-vidal-466_bisexuality_sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-differ_48477.jpg) > [I was brought up to believe that what is out-of-doors should stay there and not be encouraged in any way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-was-brought-up-to-believe-that-what-is-out-of-doors-should-stay/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1c/gore-vidal-466_be-encouraged_i-was-brought-up-to-believe-that-what-is_1804885.jpg) > [I suppose that one is always tempted to challenge those who think that they and they alone possess the truth or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-suppose-that-one-is-always-tempted-to-challenge-those-who-think/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/083/gore-vidal-466_challenge_i-suppose-that-one-is-always-tempted-to_714798.jpg) > [Capote I truly loathed. The way you might loathe an animal. A filthy animal that has found its way into the house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might-loathe-an-animal-a-filthy/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/gore-vidal-466_animal_capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might_1543132.jpg) > [Laughing at someone else is an excellent way of learning how to laugh at oneself; and questioning what seem to be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/laughing-at-someone-else-is-an-excellent-way-of-learning-how-to-laugh/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/79f/gore-vidal-466_absurd_laughing-at-someone-else-is-an-excellent_1555444.jpg) > [Yet in a society of conflicting interests the only democratic way in which matters can be improved is through politics, and politics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/yet-in-a-society-of-conflicting-interests-the-only-democratic-way-in/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0cd/gore-vidal-466_achieve_yet-in-a-society-of-conflicting-interest_1338505.jpg) > [We're the most captive nation of slaves that ever came along. The moral timidity of the average American is quite noticeable. Everybody's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/we-re-the-most-captive-nation-of-slaves-that-ever-came-along-the/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e4e/gore-vidal-466_average_we-re-the-most-captive-nation-of-slaves_1474690.jpg) > [USA is suffering between imperialists and anti-imperialists. That is the situation. The most powerful country in the world is on its way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/usa-is-suffering-between-imperialists-and-anti-imperialists-that-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1f/gore-vidal-466_age_usa-is-suffering-between-imperialists-an_552943.jpg) > [Everybody is bisexual, and that is a fact of human nature. Some people practice both, and some practice one thing, and some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact-of-human-nature-some-people/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/gore-vidal-466_bisexual_everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact_2013920.jpg) > [In large Victorian houses with many rooms and heavy doors, the occupants could be mysterious and exciting to one another in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-rooms-and-heavy-doors-the/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/828/gore-vidal-466_byron_in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-room_1444825.jpg) > [Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/gore-vidal-466_believe_many-people-in-the-united-states-happen_7054.jpg) > [I'd still like to be the President, of course, and I think the best way to do that would be to raise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-d-still-like-to-be-the-president-of-course-and-i-think-the-best-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/gore-vidal-466_army_i-d-still-like-to-be-the-president-of-co_1077998.jpg) > [Writing of history is our only heuristic principle. The Germans have a word for it, einfühlen. It is the ability to experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic-principle-the-germans-have-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fb/gore-vidal-466_ability_writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic_2028442.jpg) > [It doesn't actually make any difference whether the President is Republican or Democrat. The genius of the American ruling class is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference-whether-the-president-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/gore-vidal-466_able_it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference_1549286.jpg) > [The most interesting thing about writing is the way that it obliterates time. Three hours seem like three minutes. Then there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-most-interesting-thing-about-writing-is-the-way-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/038/gore-vidal-466_business_the-most-interesting-thing-about-writing_2541567.jpg) > [People are worse educated than they used to be. Certainly they are not very interested in reading books, as opposed to watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/people-are-worse-educated-than-they-used-to-be-certainly-they-are-not/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf2/gore-vidal-466_book_people-are-worse-educated-than-they-used_776638.jpg) > [Constant work, constant writing and constant revision. The real writer learns nothing from life. He is more like an oyster or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/constant-work-constant-writing-and-constant-revision-the-real-writer/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c52/gore-vidal-466_art_constant-work-constant-writing-and-const_1685316.jpg) > [Memory is strange. Scientifically, it is not a mechanical means of repeating something. I can think a thousand times about when I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/memory-is-strange-scientifically-it-is-not-a-mechanical-means-of/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fa/gore-vidal-466_age_memory-is-strange-scientifically-it-is-n_2346937.jpg) ## Other authors on Way ## More by Gore Vidal > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct in wanting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“It is curious how little interested we are in the sexual desires of those who do not attract us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-little-interested-we-are-in-the-sexual-desires-of/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [This separation was absolute in our original Republic. But the sky-godders do not give up easily. In the 1950s they actually got the phrase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/this-separation-was-absolute-in-our-original-republic-but-the-sky/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/style-is-knowing-who-you-are-what-you-want-to-say-and-not-giving-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The oligarchs think that the people are both dangerous and stupid. Their point is moot. But we do know that the oligarchs are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-oligarchs-think-that-the-people-are-both-dangerous-and-stupid/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [It is curious how often one prefers his enemies to his friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-is-curious-how-often-one-prefers-his-enemies-to-his-friends/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/as-societies-grow-decadent-the-language-grows-decadent-too-words-are/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Rome ... at its most decadent, had never thought of hiring an actor to go through the motions of being an emperor while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/rome-at-its-most-decadent-had-never-thought-of-hiring-an-actor-to-go/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [History is nothing but gossip about the past, with the hope that it might be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/history-is-nothing-but-gossip-about-the-past-with-the-hope-that-it/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [The malady of civilized man is his knowledge of death. The good artist, like the wise man, addresses himself to life and invests with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/the-malady-of-civilized-man-is-his-knowledge-of-death-the-good-artist/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Sex is a continuum. You go through different phases along life's way... and if you don't, you've been sort of cheated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-different-phases-along-life-s-way/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [All I want is that Americans still be able to read the alphabet in a hundred years. I am not very ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/all-i-want-is-that-americans-still-be-able-to-read-the-alphabet-in-a/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I do not admire 'the people,' as such. No one really does. Their folk wisdom is usually false, their instincts predatory. Even their sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/i-do-not-admire-the-people-as-such-no-one-really-does-their-folk/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [“One of the problems of a society as tightly controlled as ours is that we get so little information about what those of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/one-of-the-problems-of-a-society-as-tightly-controlled-as-ours-is/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/gore-vidal/#itemlist", "name": "22 Way Quotes By Gore Vidal", "numberOfItems": 22, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Never offend an enemy in a small way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/870/gore-vidal-466_enemy_never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way-166_1660445.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/870/gore-vidal-466_enemy_never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way-166_1660445.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/870/gore-vidal-466_enemy_never-offend-an-enemy-in-a-small-way-166_1660445.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Never offend an enemy in a small way.” — Gore Vidal", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The most interesting thing about writing is the way that it obliterates time. 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You go through different phases along life's way... and if you don't, you've been sort of cheated.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-different-phases-along-life-s-way/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c94/gore-vidal-466_bisexuality_sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-differ_48477.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c94/gore-vidal-466_bisexuality_sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-differ_48477.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c94/gore-vidal-466_bisexuality_sex-is-a-continuum-you-go-through-differ_48477.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sex is a continuum. 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The way you might loathe an animal. A filthy animal that has found its way into the house.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might-loathe-an-animal-a-filthy/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/gore-vidal-466_animal_capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might_1543132.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/gore-vidal-466_animal_capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might_1543132.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/gore-vidal-466_animal_capote-i-truly-loathed-the-way-you-might_1543132.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Capote I truly loathed. The way you might loathe an animal. 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Some people practice both, and some practice one thing, and some people practice another thing and that is the way human beings are.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact-of-human-nature-some-people/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/gore-vidal-466_bisexual_everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact_2013920.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/gore-vidal-466_bisexual_everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact_2013920.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce4/gore-vidal-466_bisexual_everybody-is-bisexual-and-that-is-a-fact_2013920.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Everybody is bisexual, and that is a fact of human nature. 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Not even the lust of a Lord Byron could survive the fact of Levittown.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-rooms-and-heavy-doors-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/828/gore-vidal-466_byron_in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-room_1444825.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/828/gore-vidal-466_byron_in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-room_1444825.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/828/gore-vidal-466_byron_in-large-victorian-houses-with-many-room_1444825.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In large Victorian houses with many rooms and heavy doors, the occupants could be mysterious and exciting to…” — Gore Vidal", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 15, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the Vietcong are correct in wanting to organize their country in their own way politically. This happens to be pretty much the opinion of western Europe and the other parts of the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/many-people-in-the-united-states-happen-to-believe-that-united-states/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/gore-vidal-466_believe_many-people-in-the-united-states-happen_7054.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/gore-vidal-466_believe_many-people-in-the-united-states-happen_7054.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/812/gore-vidal-466_believe_many-people-in-the-united-states-happen_7054.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Many people in the United States happen to believe that United States policy is wrong in Vietnam and the…” — Gore Vidal", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 16, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'd still like to be the President, of course, and I think the best way to do that would be to raise an army and seize the Capital. 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The Germans have a word for it, einfühlen. It is the ability to experience the past in the present and to recreate it. In my books, I have tried to recreate it in the most natural way possible: History must be integrated into the story without the weight of premonition.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic-principle-the-germans-have-a/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fb/gore-vidal-466_ability_writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic_2028442.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fb/gore-vidal-466_ability_writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic_2028442.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5fb/gore-vidal-466_ability_writing-of-history-is-our-only-heuristic_2028442.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Writing of history is our only heuristic principle. The Germans have a word for it, einfühlen. 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The genius of the American ruling class is that it has been able to make the people think that they have had something to do with the electing of presidents for 200 years when they've had absolutely nothing to say about the candidates or the policies or the way the country is run.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gore Vidal" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference-whether-the-president-is/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/gore-vidal-466_able_it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference_1549286.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/gore-vidal-466_able_it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference_1549286.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/gore-vidal-466_able_it-doesn-t-actually-make-any-difference_1549286.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It doesn't actually make any difference whether the President is Republican or Democrat. 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