409 Quotes by Pearl S. Buck

And as she had learned to do, while she pondered on large things, she acted on small ones.

And from that time on the boys were no longer called Elder and Younger, but they were given school names by the old teacher, and this old man, after inquiring into the occupation of their father, erected two names for the sons; for the elder, Nung En, and for the second Nung Wen, and the first word of each name signified one whose wealth is from the earth.

With increasing passion she loved beauty, for beauty, she told herself, and only beauty, was pure and good and worthy of her love.

People everywhere do not concern themselves much beyond the common round of everyday, and this is the chief problem for a democratic government, whose success depends upon an informed and responsible citizenry.

Times were chosen and appointed. If one forced them, they were wrong.

Ah well, Liang was her husband and she would never have another. Even had she been young and beautiful she would not have run from man to man as women did nowadays. But she was neither young nor beautiful and she was grateful for Liang. It was honorable to be his wife, and if he had a peevish temper at home, he might have been worse. He had never beaten her, and she had learned, after all these years, how to torture him.

An Englishman is never afraid of being laughed at. He just thinks the other fellow is a fool. But Americans still can’t risk anybody laughing at them.

The very young are not ready for much knowledge. It must be given to them slowly, in proportion to their years of life. One must first live before he can safely know.

Nations, like individuals, can only learn by their own individual experience.” Yul-chun.