The acceptance that all that is solid has melted into the air, that reality and morality are not givens but imperfect human constructs, is the point from which fiction begins.

Quote by Salman Rushdie

Topics: Salman Rushdie Quotes

Be sure that you go to the author to get at his meaning, not to...

Be sure that you go to the author to get at his meaning, not to...

What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist

What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist

Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.

Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.

Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious...

Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious...

It is very, very easy not to be offended by a book. You just have...

It is very, very easy not to be offended by a book. You just have...

Such is the miraculous nature of the future of exiles: what is first uttered in...

Such is the miraculous nature of the future of exiles: what is first uttered in...

Throughout human history, the apostles of purity, those who have claimed to possess a total...

Throughout human history, the apostles of purity, those who have claimed to possess a total...

If Woody Allen were a Muslim, he'd be dead by now.

If Woody Allen were a Muslim, he'd be dead by now.

A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides,...

A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides,...

The real risks for any artist are taken in pushing the work to the limits...

The real risks for any artist are taken in pushing the work to the limits...

I do not need the idea of God to explain the world I live in.

I do not need the idea of God to explain the world I live in.

When thought becomes excessively painful, action is the finest remedy.

When thought becomes excessively painful, action is the finest remedy.

Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.

Free speech is the whole thing, the whole ball game. Free speech is life itself.

I hate admitting that my enemies have a point.

I hate admitting that my enemies have a point.

Whores and writers, Mahound. We are the people you can't forgive.

Whores and writers, Mahound. We are the people you can't forgive.

In this world without quiet corners, there can be no easy escapes from history, from...

In this world without quiet corners, there can be no easy escapes from history, from...

What one writer can make in the solitude of one room is something no power...

What one writer can make in the solitude of one room is something no power...

One of the extraordinary things about human events is that the unthinkable becomes thinkable.

One of the extraordinary things about human events is that the unthinkable becomes thinkable.

Sometimes legends make reality, and become more useful than the facts.

Sometimes legends make reality, and become more useful than the facts.

What distinguishes a great artist from a weak one is first their sensibility and tenderness;...

What distinguishes a great artist from a weak one is first their sensibility and tenderness;...