CONVERSATION QUOTES II

quotations about conversation

Conversation should be like juggling; up go the balls and plates, up and over, in and out, good solid objects that glitter in the footlights and fall with a bang if you miss them.

EVELYN WAUGH

attributed, English Phrasal Verbs


Conversation is the laboratory and workshop of the student.

RALPH WALDO EMERSON

Society and Solitude


Conversation is imperative if gaps are to be filled, and old age, it is the last gap but one.

PATRICK WHITE

The Tree of Man


The more the pleasures of the body fade away, the greater to me is the pleasure and charm of conversation.

PLATO

The Republic


His conversation does not show the minute hand; but he strikes the hour very correctly.

SAMUEL JOHNSON

Johnsoniana


Conversation is a game of circles.

RALPH WALDO EMERSON

"Circles", Essays


Two people together often feel compelled to speak. There is sometimes a discomfort and the conversation is like pulling teeth. One person says something useless just for the sake of speaking, and then the other feels it necessary to respond.

GARY PATELLA

Diary of an Evil Genius


A good conversation always involves a certain amount of complaining. I like to bond over mutual hatreds and petty grievances.

LISA KLEYPAS

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor


That silence is one of the great arts of conversation is allowed by Cicero himself, who says, there is not only an art, but even an eloquence in it.

HANNAH MORE

Essays on Various Subjects


Please don't turn the light out
I don't think the conversation's over
Don't just shut your eyes closed
Not until I get it off my chest

THE VACCINES

"Denial", English Graffiti


Surely she had endured enough for one evening without having to listen to intelligent conversation?

STELLA GIBBONS

Cold Comfort Farm


Galinda didn't often stop to consider whether she believed in what she said or not; the whole point of conversations was flow.

GREGORY MAGUIRE

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West


Conversation is the image of the mind; as the man, so is his speech.

PUBLILIUS SYRUS

Maxims


A conversation is like having a catch with someone. A good partner tosses the ball directly into your glove, making it almost impossible for you to miss it; when he is on the receiving end, he catches everything sent his way, even the most errant and incompetent throws.

PAUL AUSTER

Moon Palace


I don't know what he means by that, but I nod and smile at him. You'd be surprised at how far that response can get you in a conversation where you are completely confused.

JODI PICOULT

House Rules


It was the polite thing to talk to people about what they were interested in, not about what you were interested in.

HARPER LEE

To Kill a Mockingbird


A conversation is a dialogue, not a monologue. That's why there are so few good conversations: due to scarcity, two intelligent talkers seldom meet.

TRUMAN CAPOTE

Portraits and Observations


The most fruitful and natural exercise for our minds is, in my opinion, conversation.

MICHEL DE MONTAIGNE

Essays


A philosopher who is not taking part in discussions is like a boxer who never goes into the ring.

LUDWIG WITTGENSTEIN

Personal Recollections


For some, conversation is like a dance, with the conversational partners coordinating their movements smoothly. For others it's like traffic crossing an intersection, involving lots of alternating movement without any crashes.

GEORGE YULE

Pragmatics