Cesare Pavese Quotes

Every luxury must be paid for, and everything is a luxury, starting with being in this world.

~ Cesare Pavese

We do not remember days, we remember moments.

~ Cesare Pavese

From someone who doesn't want to share your destiny, you should neither accept a cigarette

~ Cesare Pavese

The words that strike us are those that awake an echo in a zone we have already made our own—the place where we live—and the vibration enables us to find fresh starting points within ourselves.

~ Cesare Pavese

No woman marries for money; they are all clever enough, before marrying a millionaire, to fall in love with him first.

~ Cesare Pavese

Literature is a defense against the attacks of life. It says to life: You can't deceive me. I know your habits, foresee and enjoy watching your reactions, and steal your secret by involving you in cunning obstructions that halt your normal flo

~ Cesare Pavese

Literature is a defense against the attacks of life. It says to life: You can't deceive me. I know your habits, foresee and enjoy watching your reactions, and steal your secret by involving you in cunning obstructions that halt your normal

~ Cesare Pavese

We do not remember days, we remember moments. The richness of life lies in memories we have forgotten

~ Cesare Pavese

The whole problem of life is this: how to break out of one's own solitude, how to communicate with others.

~ Cesare Pavese

If it is true that one gets used to suffering, how is it that as the years go one always suffers more? No, they are not mad, those people who amuse themselves, enjoy life, travel, make love, fight—they are not mad. We should like to do the same ourselves.

~ Cesare Pavese

And then we cowardswho loved the whisperingevening, the houses,the paths by the river,the dirty red lightsof those places, the sweetsoundless sorrow—we reached our hands outtoward the living chainin silence, but our heartstartled us with blood,and no more sweetness then,no more losing ourselveson the path by the river—no longer slaves, we knewwe were alone and alive.(Translated By Geoffrey Brock)

~ Cesare Pavese

Perfect behavior is born of complete indifference. Perhaps this is why we always love madly someone who treats us with indifference.

~ Cesare Pavese

Every luxury must be paid for and everything is a luxury starting with being in the world.

~ Cesare Pavese

The search for a new personality is futile what is fruitful is the interest the old personality can take in new activities.

~ Cesare Pavese

Whatever people may say the fastidious formal manner of the upper classes is preferable to the slovenly easygoing behaviour of the common middle class. In moments of crisis the former know how to act the latter become uncouth brutes.

~ Cesare Pavese

We do not remember days we remember moments.

~ Cesare Pavese

The only joy in the world is to begin.

~ Cesare Pavese

Life is pain and the enjoyment of love is an anesthetic.

~ Cesare Pavese

The closing years of life are like the end of a masquerade party, when the masks are dropped.

~ Cesare Pavese

Will power is only the tensile strength of one's own disposition. One cannot increase it by a single ounce.

~ Cesare Pavese

If you wish to travel far and fast, travel light. Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness and fears.

~ Cesare Pavese

The art of living is the art of knowing how to believe lies.

~ Cesare Pavese

The richness of life lies in memories we have forgotten.

~ Cesare Pavese

A man is never completely alone in this world. At the worst, he has the company of a boy, a youth, and by and by a grown man - the one he used to be.

~ Cesare Pavese