quotations about silence
Great hearts are free of either want or wish;
They may be proud and richly clothe themselves
In lofty, burdenless, mysterious Silence.
CARMEN SYLVA
"Out of the Deep"
I have often repented speaking, but never of holding my tongue.
XENOCRATES
attributed, The Concise Columbia Dictionary of Quotations
Silence is like nightfall. Objects are lost in it insensibly.
MADAME SWETCHINE
"Airelles", The Writings of Madame Swetchine
Every man whose business it is to think knows that he must for part of the day create about himself a pool of silence.
WALTER LIPPMANN
Public Opinion
Deep vengeance is the daughter of deep silence.
VITTORIO ALFIERI
La Congiura de' Pazzi
Down through the starry intervals,
Upon this weary-laden world,
How soft the soul of Silence falls!
How deep the spell wherewith she thralls,
How wide her mantle is unfurled.
MARY CLEMMER AMES
"Silence"
I love your silences, they are like mine.
ANAIS NIN
Under a Glass Bell
To which Silence of course made no reply, letting him hear what he had said and feel its foolishness thoroughly.
URSULA K. LE GUIN
Tales from Earthsea
The true genius shudders at incompleteness -- imperfection -- and usually prefers silence to saying the something which is not everything that should be said.
EDGAR ALLAN POE
Marginalia
Silence is one of the hardest kinds of arguments to refute.
H. W. SHAW
attributed, Day's Collacon
Saying nothing ... sometimes says the most.
EMILY DICKINSON
letter to Mrs. Joseph A. Sweetser, January 1874
He never labored so hard to learn a language as he did to hold his tongue.
HENRY ADAMS
The Education of Henry Adams
Three things are ever silent--Thought, Destiny, and the Grave.
EDWARD BULWER-LYTTON
Harold
It's not the shouting
Or the angry words
It's not those looks
Sideways glancing
It's not do as I say
It's not compliance
It's the silence
COREY GLOVER
"Silence"
Well-timed silence is the most commanding expression.
MARK HELPRIN
attributed, Quotable Quotes
When two have met, and caught in sudden gleams
Life's full completeness measured each in each,
There is no silence evermore; what seems
So, verily is the very gold of speech.
CLARA MARCELLE FARRAR GREENE
"Silence"
There are haunters of the silence, ghosts that hold the heart and brain.
MADISON CAWEIN
Haunters of the Silence
Have you ever heard the wonderful silence just before the dawn? Or the quiet and calm just as a storm ends? Or perhaps you know the silence when you haven't the answer to a question you've been asked, or the hush of a country road at night, or the expectant pause of a room full of people when someone is just about to speak, or, most beautiful of all, the moment after the door closes and you're alone in the whole house? Each one is different, you know, and all very beautiful if you listen carefully.
NORTON JUSTER
The Phantom Tollbooth
Silence is learned by the many misfortunes of life.
SENECA
Thyestes
Behind the word is silence. Behind that silence is forgetfulness.
GIANNINA BRASCHI
Empire of Dreams