Karel Čapek Quotes

So it was that Mister Povondra started his collection of newspaper cuttings about the newts. Without his passion as a collector much of the material we now have would otherwise have been lost. He cut out and saved everything written about the newts that he could find; it should even be said that after some initial fumblings he learned to plunder the newspapers in his favourite café wherever there was mention of the newts and even developed an unusual, almost magical, virtuosity in tearing the appropriate article out of the paper and putting it in his pocket right under the nose of the head waiter. It is well known that all collectors are willing to steal and murder if that is what's needed to add a certain item to their collection, but that is not in any way a stain on their moral character. His life was now the life of a collector, and that gave it meaning. Evening after evening he would count and arrange his cuttings under the indulgent eyes of Mrs. Povondra who knew that every man is partly mad and partly a little child; it was better for him to play with his cuttings than to go out drinking and playing cards. She even made some space in the scullery for all the boxes he had made himself for his collection; could anything more be asked of a wife?

They all had a thousand good economic and political reasons why they couldn’t stop. I’m not a politician or a businessman; how am I supposed to persuade them about these things. What are we supposed to do; quite likely the world will collapse and disappear under water; but at least that will happen for political and economic reasons we can all understand, at least it will happen with the help of science, technology and public opinion, with human ingenuity of all sorts! Not some cosmic catastrophe but just the same old reasons to do with the struggle for power and money and so on. There’s nothing we can do about that.

Dr Gall: Hoši, je to zločin staré Evropy, že naučila Roboty válčit! Nemohli už dát, u čerta, pokoj s tou svou politikou? To byl zločin, udělat z živé práce vojáky!
Alquist: Zločin byl vyrábět Roboty!
Domin: Cože?
Alquist: Zločin byl vyrábět Roboty!
Domin: Ne. Alquiste, ani dnes toho nelituju.
Alquist: Ani dnes?
Domin: Ani dnes, v poslední den civilizace. Byla to veliká věc.

A lélekelemző azt mondaná, azért olvasunk szenvedélyesen bűnügyi történeteket, mert ez az egyetlen nyílt lehetőségünk, hogy kiéljük titkolt bűnözési hajlamainkat. Lehet, a lappangó bűnözési hajlamok objektivizálódásának nevezné ezt, vagy hasonló tudományos címkét ragasztana rá. Ami engem illet, nem tudok ennek ellentmondani; de azt gondolom, hogy a bűnügyi olvasmány lappangó bűnözési hajlamainkon kívül még valamit objektivizál: lappangó és szenvedélyes igazságkereső hajlamainkat, és a rejtett bűnözőn kívül életre hívja bennünk az igazságos ítélkezőt. Vagyis tehát, kedves detektívregény-olvasó, részt veszel a bűncselekményben, de üldözöd is a bűnt, feltámad benned Káin, de hallod a hangot is, mely így szól: Mit cselekedtél? Mostan azért átkozott légy a földön.

Why are there stars when there are no people? O God, why don't you just extinguish them? — Cool my brow, ancient night! Divine and fair as you always were — O night, what purpose do you serve? There are no lovers, no dreams. O nursemaid, dead as a sleep without dreams, you no longer hallow anyone's prayers. O mother of us all, you don't bless a single heart smitten with love. There is no love.

You still stand watch, O human star, burning without a flicker, perfect flame, bright and resourceful spirit. Each of your rays a great idea - O torch which passes from hand to hand, from age to age, world without end.

nothing is stranger to man than his own image

Listen, demons don’t exist And if they did exist they would look like Europeans. That must have been some kind of fish you saw or something.

" — Това е то днешното възпитание — провъзгласи старият Янечек. — А като река понякога да кажа нещо на сина, той ще ми отвърне: "Ти не ги разбираш тия работи, тате, днес е друго време, друга епоха" — то дори и за костените оръжия не можело да се каже, че били последна дума. „Един ден, казва, хората ще измислят още по-инакъв материал…“ Ето това, знаеш ли, вече е прекалено: като че ли някога някой е виждал друг, по-здрав материал от камъка, дървото и кокала! Сега вече и ти самата, която си една глупава жена, трябва да признаеш, че... че... че това минава границите на всичко!"

The most terrible struggle in our recent history is being played out. It is not only a struggle for our land, it is a struggle for our soul.... A thousand years of tradition suffice for a nation to learn once and for always these two things: to defend its existence, and with all its heart and all its strength to stand on the side of peace and liberty.

Stop it now! D’you think I can work miracles? What must be will be. Let everything take its inexorable course! There’s some kind of consolation even in this: that whatever is happening follows its own inevitability and its own law.

A já vám něco povím: To, čemu říkáme náš život, to není všecko, co jsme prožili; je to jen výběr. Toho, co prožíváme, je příliš mnoho, víc než nač stačí náš rozum. Proto si jen vybíráme to a ono, co se nám hodí, a jaksi z toho upleteme takový zjednodušený děj; a tomu výrobku říkáme náš život. Ale co odpadků přitom necháváme, co divných a strašných věcí pomíjíme, kristepane, kdyby to si člověk uvědomil! Ale my můžeme žít jen jeden jednoduchý život. Bylo by nad naši sílu prožít víc. Neměli bychom sílu nést život, kdybychom nepoztráceli cestou většinu života.

Mnoho lidí stárne jen z pohodlnosti, že už nechtějí nic dělat. Nestárnout, to není jen udržet se, ale pořád růst, pořád získávat; každý rok má být, jako by člověk vystoupil o příčli na žebříku výš.

A tak se mi zdá, že spánek je jako temná a hluboká voda. V ní odplývá všechno, o čem nevíme a nemáme vědět. Ten divný rmut, který se v nás usazuje, se vyplaví a odtéká v tom bezvědomí, které nemá břehů. Naše špatnosti a zbabělosti, všechny ty naše všední a trapné hříchy, naše ponižující voloviny a nezdary, ta vteřina lži a nelásky v očích těch, které milujeme, to, čím jsme se provinili my, i to, čím se jiní provinili na nás, to všechno tichounce odplývá někam za dosah vědomí. Spánek je nesmírně milosrdný; odpouští nám i našim viníkům.

Socialism is good when it comes to wages, but it tells me nothing when it comes to other questions in life that are more private and painful, for which I must seek answers elsewhere. Relativism is not indifference; on the contrary, passionate indifference is necessary in order for you not to hear the voices that oppose your absolute decrees … Relativism is neither a method of fighting, nor a method of creating, for both of these are uncompromising and at times even ruthless; rather, it is a method of cognition. If one must fight or create, it is necessary that this be preceded by the broadest possible knowledge ... One of the worst muddles of this age is its confusing of the ideas behind combative and cognitive activity. Cognition is not fighting, but once someone knows a lot, he will have much to fight for, so much that he will be called a relativist because of it.