All James A. Baldwin Quotes
- The great force of history comes from the fact that we carry it within us, are unconsciously controlled by it in many ways, and history… All
- People who believe that they are strong-willed and the masters of their destiny can only continue to believe this by becoming specialists in self-deception. Becoming
- The sea rises, the light fails, lovers cling to each other, and children cling to us. The moment we cease to hold each other, the… Break
- All of us know, whether or not we are able to admit it, that mirrors can only lie, that death by drowning is all that… Able
- Confusion is a luxury which only the very, very young can possibly afford and you are not that young anymore Afford
- Everyone wishes to be loved, but in the event, nearly no one can bear it. Everyone desires love but also finds it impossible to believe… Bear
- For nothing is more unbearable, once one has it, than freedom. Freedom
- I'm not interested in anybody's guilt. Guilt is a luxury that we can no longer afford. I know you didn't do it, and I didn't… Afford
- Any real change implies the breakup of the world as one has always known it, the loss of all that gave one an identity, the… Able
- ...in order for this to happen, your entire frame of reference will have to change, and you will be forced to surrender many things that… Change
- how can one respect, let alone adopt, the values of a people who do not, on any level whatever, live the way they say they… Adopt
- All art is a kind of confession. All
- The moral authority in the Western world is gone. And it is gone forever. It is gone, not because of the criminal record--everybody's record is… Another None
- Societies never know it, but the war of an artist with his society is a lover's war, and he does, at his best, what lovers… Artist
- Somebody," said Jacques, "your father or mine, should have told us that not many people have ever died of love. But multitudes have perished, and… Died
- The universe, which is not merely the stars and the moon and the planets, flowers, grass and trees, but other people, has evolved no terms… Alone
- If the concept of God has any validity or any use, it can only be to make us larger, freer, and more loving. If God… Any
- It seems to me that one ought to rejoice in the fact of death-- ought to decide, indeed, to earn one's death by confronting with… Beacon
- Yet I also suspected that what I was seeing was but a part of the truth and perhaps not even the most important part; beneath… Accents
- Precisely at the point when you begin to develop a conscience you must find yourself at war with your society. Begin
- No one knows very much about the life of another. This ignorance becomes vivid, if you love another. Love sets the imagination on fire, and,… Another Love
- You have to go the way your blood beats. If you don't live the only life you have, you won't live some other life, you… All
- Because I was raised in a Christian culture I never considered myself to be a totally free human being. Christian
- Whoever is born in New York is ill-equipped to deal with any other city: all other cities seem, at best, a mistake, and, at worst,… All
- If I could make you stay, I would,’ he shouted. ‘If I had to beat you, chain you, starve you—if I could make you stay,… Beat