Heroes: Mortals and Monsters, Quests and Adventures

by Stephen Fry

‘But focus,’ said Hermes. ‘Relaxation without focus leads to failure.’ ‘Focus without relaxation leads to failure just as surely,’ said Athena.

So, you love the light of day. What makes you think your father hates it? Know this: we are a long time dead. Life may be short, but it is sweet.’

‘You see?’ said Prometheus. ‘It is your fate to be Heracles the hero, burdened with labours, yet it is also your choice. You choose to submit to it. Such is the paradox of living. We willingly accept that we have no will.’

‘It is the fate of the young never to learn,’ the centaur sighed. ‘I suppose it is arrogance and unwavering self-belief that propels them to their triumphs, just as surely as it is arrogance and unwavering self-belief that unseats them and sends them plummeting to their ends.’

Matters of immense import may depend on such issues, but we can never do more than guess the outcomes of the roads we do not take.