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Top 500 Saul Bellow Quotes (2026 Update)
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Saul Bellow Quote: “What you do know is that there is one fact of Jewish life unchanged by the creation of a Jewish state: you cannot take your right to live for granted. Others can; you cannot. This is not to say that everyone else is living pleasantly and well under a decent regime. No, it means only that the Jews, because they are Jews, have never been able to take the right to live as a natural right.”

401. “What you do know is that there is one fact of Jewish life unchanged by the creation of a Jewish state: you cannot take your right to live for granted. Others can; you cannot. This is not to say that everyone else is living pleasantly and well under a decent regime. No, it means only that the Jews, because they are Jews, have never been able to take the right to live as a natural right.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Slavery has never really been abolished. More people are enslaved to different things than you can shake a stick at.”

402. “Slavery has never really been abolished. More people are enslaved to different things than you can shake a stick at.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “The lawyers – see? – draw up an agreement, and she says okay on Monday and wants more money on Tuesday. And it begins again.”

403. “The lawyers – see? – draw up an agreement, and she says okay on Monday and wants more money on Tuesday. And it begins again.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “She was a bathing beauty – short, the usual breasts, hips, and smooth thighs.”

404. “She was a bathing beauty – short, the usual breasts, hips, and smooth thighs.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But I have had visions of judgment. I see mainly the obstinacy of cripples. We do not love ourselves, but persist in stubbornness. Each man is stubbornly, stubbornly himself.”

405. “But I have had visions of judgment. I see mainly the obstinacy of cripples. We do not love ourselves, but persist in stubbornness. Each man is stubbornly, stubbornly himself.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “For knowledge of death makes us wish to extend our lives at the expense of others. And this is the root of the struggle for power.”

406. “For knowledge of death makes us wish to extend our lives at the expense of others. And this is the root of the struggle for power.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “It’s the hysterical individual who allows his life to be polarized by simple extreme antitheses like strength – weakness, potency – impotence, health – sickness.”

407. “It’s the hysterical individual who allows his life to be polarized by simple extreme antitheses like strength – weakness, potency – impotence, health – sickness.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “His friend, his former friend, Valentine, and his wife, his ex-wife Madeleine, had spread the rumor that his sanity had collapsed.”

408. “His friend, his former friend, Valentine, and his wife, his ex-wife Madeleine, had spread the rumor that his sanity had collapsed.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Well, for instance, what it means to be a man. In a city. In a century. In transition. In a mass. Transformed by science. Under organized power. Subject to tremendous controls. In a condition caused by mechanization. After the late failure of radical hopes. In a society that was no community and devalued the person. Owing to the multiplied power of numbers which made the self negligible.”

409. “Well, for instance, what it means to be a man. In a city. In a century. In transition. In a mass. Transformed by science. Under organized power. Subject to tremendous controls. In a condition caused by mechanization. After the late failure of radical hopes. In a society that was no community and devalued the person. Owing to the multiplied power of numbers which made the self negligible.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But can thought wake you from the dream of existence? Not if it becomes a second realm of confusion, another more complicated dream, the dream of intellect, the delusion of total explanations.”

410. “But can thought wake you from the dream of existence? Not if it becomes a second realm of confusion, another more complicated dream, the dream of intellect, the delusion of total explanations.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “He was the obscure failure of an aggressive and powerful clan.”

411. “He was the obscure failure of an aggressive and powerful clan.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “I believe Uncle’s intuition to have been that plants functioned as sense organs, collecting cosmic data for the earth itself.”

412. “I believe Uncle’s intuition to have been that plants functioned as sense organs, collecting cosmic data for the earth itself.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Hearts quaking with cheap and feeble charity or oozing potato love have not written history.”

413. “Hearts quaking with cheap and feeble charity or oozing potato love have not written history.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Mind you, I’m a great admirer of our species. I stand in awe of the genius of the race. But a large part of this genius is devoted to lying and seeming what you are not.”

414. “Mind you, I’m a great admirer of our species. I stand in awe of the genius of the race. But a large part of this genius is devoted to lying and seeming what you are not.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “This is the way of the weak; quiet and fair.”

415. “This is the way of the weak; quiet and fair.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “More than human, can you have any use for life? Less than human, you don’t either.”

416. “More than human, can you have any use for life? Less than human, you don’t either.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “The Dictator must have living crowds and also a crowd of corpses.”

417. “The Dictator must have living crowds and also a crowd of corpses.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “He said, repeating the opinion of Socrates in the Phaedrus, that a tree, so beautiful to look at, never spoke a word and that conversation was possible only in the city, between men.”

418. “He said, repeating the opinion of Socrates in the Phaedrus, that a tree, so beautiful to look at, never spoke a word and that conversation was possible only in the city, between men.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “The secret of our being still asks to be unfolded. Only now we understand that worrying at it and ragging it is no use. The first step is to stop these oscillations of consciousness that are keeping me awake. Only, before you command the oscillations to stop, before you check out, you must maneuver yourself into a position in which metaphysical aid can approach.”

419. “The secret of our being still asks to be unfolded. Only now we understand that worrying at it and ragging it is no use. The first step is to stop these oscillations of consciousness that are keeping me awake. Only, before you command the oscillations to stop, before you check out, you must maneuver yourself into a position in which metaphysical aid can approach.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “The human being, more and more oppressed by the peculiar terms of his existence – one time around for each, no more than a single life per customer – has to think of the boredom of death. O those eternities of nonexistence! For people who crave continual interest and diversity, O! how boring death will be! To live in the grave, in one place, how frightful!”

420. “The human being, more and more oppressed by the peculiar terms of his existence – one time around for each, no more than a single life per customer – has to think of the boredom of death. O those eternities of nonexistence! For people who crave continual interest and diversity, O! how boring death will be! To live in the grave, in one place, how frightful!”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Anyone who wants to govern the country, has to entertain it.”

421. “Anyone who wants to govern the country, has to entertain it.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Everybody wanted to be what he was to the limit.”

422. “Everybody wanted to be what he was to the limit.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But at least one thing became clear. To look for fulfillment in another, in interpersonal relationships, was a feminine game.”

423. “But at least one thing became clear. To look for fulfillment in another, in interpersonal relationships, was a feminine game.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “He was here to give aid, to clarify and move, and to make certain if he could that the greatness of humankind would not entirely evaporate in bourgeois well-being, et cetera. There was nothing of the average in Ravelstein’s life. He did not accept dullness and boredom. Nor was depression tolerated.”

424. “He was here to give aid, to clarify and move, and to make certain if he could that the greatness of humankind would not entirely evaporate in bourgeois well-being, et cetera. There was nothing of the average in Ravelstein’s life. He did not accept dullness and boredom. Nor was depression tolerated.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “On the simplest level he could tell you in detail what he felt – what effects an aspirin had on him, what it did to the back of his neck or the inside of his mouth. I was curious about this, because for the life of them most people can’t describe what goes on inside. Alcoholics or druggies are too confused, hypochondriacs are their own terrorists, and most of us are aware only of a metabolic uproar within.”

425. “On the simplest level he could tell you in detail what he felt – what effects an aspirin had on him, what it did to the back of his neck or the inside of his mouth. I was curious about this, because for the life of them most people can’t describe what goes on inside. Alcoholics or druggies are too confused, hypochondriacs are their own terrorists, and most of us are aware only of a metabolic uproar within.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Even in a few minutes’ conversation, do you realize how many times what you feel is converted before it comes out as what you say?”

426. “Even in a few minutes’ conversation, do you realize how many times what you feel is converted before it comes out as what you say?”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Forgetfully, Wilhelm traveled for miles in second gear; he was seldom in the right lane and he neither gave signals nor watched for lights.”

427. “Forgetfully, Wilhelm traveled for miles in second gear; he was seldom in the right lane and he neither gave signals nor watched for lights.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Dear Doktor Professor Heidegger, I should like to know what you mean by the expression “the fall into the quotidian.” When did this fall occur? Where were we standing when it happened?”

428. “Dear Doktor Professor Heidegger, I should like to know what you mean by the expression “the fall into the quotidian.” When did this fall occur? Where were we standing when it happened?”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Do you believe in transcendence downward as well as upward?”

429. “Do you believe in transcendence downward as well as upward?”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “To tell the truth, I never had it so good, he wrote. But I lacked the strength of character to bear such joy. That was hardly a joke. When a man’s breast feels like a cage from which all the dark birds have flown – he is free, he is light. And he longs to have his vultures back again. He wants his customary struggles, his nameless, empty works, his anger, his afflictions and his sins.”

430. “To tell the truth, I never had it so good, he wrote. But I lacked the strength of character to bear such joy. That was hardly a joke. When a man’s breast feels like a cage from which all the dark birds have flown – he is free, he is light. And he longs to have his vultures back again. He wants his customary struggles, his nameless, empty works, his anger, his afflictions and his sins.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “A wide wrinkle like a comprehensive bracket sign was written upon his forehead, the point between his brows, and there were patches of brown on his dark-blond skin.”

431. “A wide wrinkle like a comprehensive bracket sign was written upon his forehead, the point between his brows, and there were patches of brown on his dark-blond skin.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “As a man sees, so he is.” The world as it appears to you classifies your mind.”

432. “As a man sees, so he is.” The world as it appears to you classifies your mind.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Dr. Adler surrendered his arm to the masseur, who was using wintergreen oil.”

433. “Dr. Adler surrendered his arm to the masseur, who was using wintergreen oil.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Well, you are a privileged character. You’re the only man living whose mother lost her mind and died.”

434. “Well, you are a privileged character. You’re the only man living whose mother lost her mind and died.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “For to be fully conscious of oneself as an individual is also to be separated from all else.”

435. “For to be fully conscious of oneself as an individual is also to be separated from all else.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Is it an easier farewell for Dad if we don’t part friends?”

436. “Is it an easier farewell for Dad if we don’t part friends?”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “She has two husbands. Whose are the kids? The fellow detected her and she gave a signed confession that two of the four children were not the father’s.”

437. “She has two husbands. Whose are the kids? The fellow detected her and she gave a signed confession that two of the four children were not the father’s.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Gratitude! I was deeply grateful. But the politic gratitude of weakness, of the sufferer, furious underneath.”

438. “Gratitude! I was deeply grateful. But the politic gratitude of weakness, of the sufferer, furious underneath.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “It seemed necessary for him to lift one shoulder in order to put his hand into his jacket pocket.”

439. “It seemed necessary for him to lift one shoulder in order to put his hand into his jacket pocket.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “She liked to give the example of Whistler the painter when he was taken to task by a woman who said, “I never see trees like that.” He told her, “No, ma’am, but don’t you wish you could?” This could be a variation on “Ye have eyes and see not,” an aesthete’s version of it.”

440. “She liked to give the example of Whistler the painter when he was taken to task by a woman who said, “I never see trees like that.” He told her, “No, ma’am, but don’t you wish you could?” This could be a variation on “Ye have eyes and see not,” an aesthete’s version of it.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Can’t dump the sonofabitch, can we? Terrible handicap, a soul.”

441. “Can’t dump the sonofabitch, can we? Terrible handicap, a soul.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “It is better to die what you are than to live a stranger forever.”

442. “It is better to die what you are than to live a stranger forever.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “He turned out to be right. Grielescu had attached himself to the Nazis, not to the milder, Italian form of fascism.”

443. “He turned out to be right. Grielescu had attached himself to the Nazis, not to the milder, Italian form of fascism.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “He tried to make his lust comical, to show how absurd it all was, easily the most wretched form of human struggle, the very essence of slavery.”

444. “He tried to make his lust comical, to show how absurd it all was, easily the most wretched form of human struggle, the very essence of slavery.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But the Jews feel that the world was created for each and every one of us, and when you destroy a human life you destroy an entire world – the world as it existed for that person.”

445. “But the Jews feel that the world was created for each and every one of us, and when you destroy a human life you destroy an entire world – the world as it existed for that person.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “Never has any country given its people so many toys to play with or sent such highly gifted individuals to the remotest corners of idleness, as close as possible to the frontiers of pain.”

446. “Never has any country given its people so many toys to play with or sent such highly gifted individuals to the remotest corners of idleness, as close as possible to the frontiers of pain.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “I got a lawyer, and she got one, too, and both of them talk and send me bills, and I eat my heart out.”

447. “I got a lawyer, and she got one, too, and both of them talk and send me bills, and I eat my heart out.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “An old man, disappointed, of failing strength, may try to reinvigorate himself by means of anger.”

448. “An old man, disappointed, of failing strength, may try to reinvigorate himself by means of anger.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But you find people who have their luck and take the credit for it, too – all brains and personality, when all that happened was that they were handed a bucket when it rained.”

449. “But you find people who have their luck and take the credit for it, too – all brains and personality, when all that happened was that they were handed a bucket when it rained.”

— Saul Bellow

Saul Bellow Quote: “But a man doesn’t need happiness for himself. No, he can put up with any amount of torment – with recollections, with his own familiar evils, despair. And this is the unwritten history of man, his unseen, negative accomplishment, his power to do without gratification for himself provided there is something great, something into which his being, and all beings, can go. He does not need meaning as long as such intensity has scope. Because then it is self-evident; it is meaning.”

450. “But a man doesn’t need happiness for himself. No, he can put up with any amount of torment – with recollections, with his own familiar evils, despair. And this is the unwritten history of man, his unseen, negative accomplishment, his power to do without gratification for himself provided there is something great, something into which his being, and all beings, can go. He does not need meaning as long as such intensity has scope. Because then it is self-evident; it is meaning.”

— Saul Bellow

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