A Jew without Jews, without Judaism, without Zionism, without Jewishness, without a temple or an army or even a pistol, a Jew clearly without a home, just the object itself, like a glass or an apple.
Philip Roth

A Jewish man with parents alive is a fifteen-year-old boy, and will remain a fifteen-year-old boy until they die!
Philip Roth

Fear tends to manifest itself much more quickly than greed, so volatile markets tend to be on the downside. In up markets, volatility tends to gradually decline.
Philip Roth

History... is a nightmare from which I am trying to awake.
Philip Roth

Is an intelligent human being likely to be much more than a large-scale manufacturer of misunderstanding?
Philip Roth

Just like those who are incurably ill, the aged know everything about their dying except exactly when.
Philip Roth

Obviously the facts are never just coming at you but are incorporated by an imagination that is formed by your previous experience. Memories of the past are not memories of facts but memories of your imaginings of the facts.
Philip Roth

Should you protect profits? Yes. But run for the hills? No.
Philip Roth

The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress.
Philip Roth

Unless one is inordinately fond of subordination, one is always at war.
Philip Roth


When you publish a book, it's the world's book. The world edits it.
Philip Roth