The Celestial Omnibus and other Stories Quotes

“But they did not chatter much, for the boy, when he liked a person, would as soon sit silent in his company as speak.”
― E.M. Forster, The Celestial Omnibus and other Stories

“At the present moment, here he was in Greece, and one of the dreams of his life was realized. Forty years ago he had caught the fever of Hellenism, and all his life he had felt that could he but visit that land, he would not have lived in vain. But Athens had been dusty, Delphi wet, Thermopylae flat, and he had listened with amazement and cynicism to the rapturous exclamations of his companions. Greece was like England: it was a man who was growing old, and it made no difference whether that man looked at the Thames or the Eurotas. It was his last hope of contradicting that logic of experience, and it was failing.”
― E.M. Forster, The Celestial Omnibus and other Stories

“He had this in common with Oedipus, that he was growing old. Even to himself it had become obvious. He had lost interest in other people’s affairs, and seldom attended when they spoke to him. He was fond of talking himself but often forgot what he was going to say, and even when he succeeded, it seldom seemed worth the effort. His phrases and gestures had become stiff and set, his anecdotes, once so successful, fell flat, his silence was as meaningless as his speech. Yet he had led a healthy, active life, had worked steadily, made money, educated his children. There was nothing and no one to blame: he was simply growing old.”
― E.M. Forster, The Celestial Omnibus and other Stories

“I am the means and not the end. I am the food and not the life. Stand by yourself, as that boy has stood. I cannot save you. For poetry is a spirit; and they that would worship it must worship in spirit and in truth.”
― E. M. Forster, The Celestial Omnibus and Other Stories [annotated]

“Oh, fence me out if you like! Fence me out as much as you like! But never in. Oh Harcourt, never in.”
― E.M. Forster, The Celestial Omnibus and Other Stories