Frank Herbert Quotes - Page 2

Quotes about:

• All governments suffer a recurring problem: Power attracts pathological personalities. It is not that power corrupts but that it is magnetic to the corruptible.

  Frank Herbert

  War, Power Corrupts, Magnet

  "Chapterhouse: Dune".

  16 Copy quote

• There is no real ending. It’s just the place where you stop the story.

  Frank Herbert

  Real, Writing, Stories

  Interview with Willis McNelly, www.sinanvural.com. February 3, 1969.

  45 Copy quote

• Politics: the art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible.

  Frank Herbert

  Art, Candid, Concealing

  Frank Herbert (1987). “Chapterhouse: Dune”, p.142, Penguin

  21 Copy quote

• Power attracts the corruptible. Suspect any who seek it.

  Frank Herbert

  Power, Corruption, Power And Corruption

  16 Copy quote

• The function of science fiction is not always to predict the future but sometimes to prevent it.

  Frank Herbert

  Science, Fiction, Sometimes

  21 Copy quote

• Do actions agree with words? There's your measure of reliability. Never confine yourself to the words.

  Frank Herbert

  Reliability, Action, Agree

  Frank Herbert (1987). “Chapterhouse: Dune”, p.110, Penguin

  44 Copy quote

• Beware of the truth, gentle Sister. Although much sought after, truth can be dangerous to the seeker. Myths and reassuring lies are much easier to find and believe. If you find a truth, even a temporary one, it can demand that you make painful changes. Conceal your truths within words. Natural ambiguity will protect you then.

  Frank Herbert

  Lying, Believe, Demand

  Frank Herbert (1984). “God Emperor of Dune”

  13 Copy quote

• Good governance never depends upon laws, but upon the personal qualities of those who govern. The machinery of government is always subordinate to the will of those who administer that machinery. The most important element of government, therefore, is the method of choosing leaders.

  Frank Herbert

  Government, Law, Personal Qualities

  Frank Herbert (2008). “Children of Dune”, p.156, Penguin

  25 Copy quote

• Every civilization depends upon the quality of the individuals it produces.

  Frank Herbert

  Civilization, Quality, Individual

  Frank Herbert (2008). “Children of Dune”, p.312, Penguin

  14 Copy quote

• Nature does not make mistakes. Right and wrong are human categories.

  Frank Herbert

  Inspirational, Life, Nature

  10 Copy quote

• When I need to identify rebels, I look for men with principles

  Frank Herbert

  Men, Principles, Rebel

  Frank Herbert (1983). “God Emperor of Dune”

  23 Copy quote

• When a wise man does not understand, he says: "I do not understand." The fool and the uncultured are ashamed of their ignorance. They remain silent when a question could bring them wisdom.

  Frank Herbert

  Wise, Ignorance, Men

  "The Godmakers". Book by Frank Herbert, 1972.

  20 Copy quote

• Small souls who seek power over others first destroy the faith those others might have in themselves.

  Frank Herbert

  Soul, Might, Firsts

  Frank Herbert (2010). “God Emperor Of Dune: The Fourth Dune Novel”, p.218, Hachette UK

  11 Copy quote

• It is impossible to live in the past, difficult to live in the present and a waste to live in the future.

  Frank Herbert

  Happiness, Past, Waste

  12 Copy quote

• Highly organized research is guaranteed to produce nothing new.

  Frank Herbert

  Research, Produce, Organized

  Frank Herbert (2003). “Dune”, p.425, Penguin

  22 Copy quote

• Educational bureaucracies dull a child's questing sensitivity. The young must be dampened down. Never let them know how good they can be. That brings change. Spend lots of committee time talking about how to deal with exceptional students. Don't spend any time dealing with how the conventional teacher feels threatened by emerging talents and squelches them because of a deep-seated desire to feel superior and safe in a safe environment.

  Frank Herbert

  Teacher, Children, Educational

  24 Copy quote

• When politics and religion are intermingled, a people is suffused with a sense of invulnerability, and gathering speed in their forward charge, they fail to see the cliff ahead of them

  Frank Herbert

  People, Gathering, Cliffs

  46 Copy quote

• A person needs new experiences. They jar something deep inside, allowing you to grow. Without them, it sleeps- seldom to awaken. The sleeper must awaken.

  Frank Herbert

  Sleep, New Experiences, Needs

  15 Copy quote

• Bureaucracy destroys initiative. There is little that bureaucrats hate more than innovation, especially innovation that produces better results than the old routines. Improvements always make those at the top of the heap look inept. Who enjoys appearing inept?

  Frank Herbert

  Hate, Thought Provoking, Innovation

  Frank Herbert (1987). “Heretics of Dune”, p.201, Penguin

  16 Copy quote

• The people I distrust most are those who want to improve our lives but have only one course of action in mind.

  Frank Herbert

  Life, Trust, People

  "The Plowboy Interview: Frank Herbert". "Mother Earth News", No. 69, May/ June 1981.

  19 Copy quote

• Technology is both a tool for helping humans and for destroying them. This is the paradox of our times which we're compelled to face.

  Frank Herbert

  Technology, Tools, Faces

  "The Maker of Dune: Insights of a Master of Science Fiction". Book edited by Tim O'Reilly, "Conversations in Port Townsend," (1983), 1987.

  8 Copy quote

• Every judgment teeters on the brink of error. To claim absolute knowledge is to become monstrous. Knowledge is an unending adventure at the edge of uncertainty.

  Frank Herbert

  Adventure, Errors, Atheism

  Frank Herbert (2008). “Children of Dune”, p.275, Penguin

  11 Copy quote

• Every civilization depends on the quality of the individuals it produces. If you over-organize humans, over-legalize them, suppress their urge to greatness-they cannot work and their civilization collapses.

  Frank Herbert

  Greatness, Civilization, Quality

  Frank Herbert (2008). “Children of Dune”, p.283, Penguin

  7 Copy quote

• Silence is often the best thing to say.

  Frank Herbert

  Silence, Silence Is, Best Things

  Frank Herbert (1987). “Chapterhouse: Dune”, p.105, Penguin

  11 Copy quote

• If I'd been born in my grandfather's time, I'd have made my grandfather's mistakes. Theres no doubt of it. I just don't want to make my grandfather's mistakes today.

  Frank Herbert

  Life, Mistake, Advice

  8 Copy quote

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