239 Quotes by Azar Nafisi

Primo Levi once said, “I write in order to rejoin the community of mankind.” Reading is a private act, but it joins us across continents and time.

I blame my generation for having neglected to teach our children that in life there are no safe places, that safety is an illusion. “Most of us, no matter what we say, are walking in the dark, whistling in the dark,” Baldwin said in an interview in 1961.

There is little consolation in the fact that millions of people are unhappier than we are. Why should other people’s misery make us happier or more content?

Education’s goal is to impart knowledge, and knowledge is not only heretical, but unpredictable and often uncomfortable.

Pain and loss, like love and joy, are unique and personal; they cannot be modified by comparison to others.

I have two things to say to that, he said. First, none of us can avoid being contaminated by the world’s evils; it’s all a matter of what attitude you take towards them. And second, you always talk about the effect of “these people” on you. Have you ever thought about your effect on them?

This is how you read a novel: you inhale the experience. So start breathing.

These are people who consciously choose failure in order to preserve their own sense of integrity. They are more elitist than mere snobs, because of their high standards.

Other people’s sorrows and joys have a way of reminding us of our own; we partly emphasize with them because we ask ourselves: What about me? What does this say about my life, my pains, my anguish?