Edward Abbey
Edward Abbey
Edward Paul Abbeywas an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the novel The Monkey Wrench Gang, which has been cited as an inspiration by radical environmental groups, and the non-fiction work Desert Solitaire...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActivist
Date of Birth29 January 1927
CountryUnited States of America
writing police musical
Poor Dimitri Shostakovich: In the Soviet Union, he was condemned as being too radical; in the West, for being too conservative. He could please no one but the musical public. He revenged himself on both by writing a short piece called 'March of the Soviet Police.'
men opera sopranos
Opera: I like it, except for all those howling sopranos and caterwauling tenors. (Why can't tenors sing like men?)
museums world-literature pay
Most of what we call the classics of world literature suggest artifacts in a wax museum. We have to hire and pay professors to get them read and talked about.
moving agreement voice
Why the critics, like a flock of ducks, always move in perfect unison: Their authority with the public depends upon an appearance of unanimous agreement. One dissenting voice would shatter the whole fragile structure.
answers tasks insolent
It is not the writer's task to answer questions but to question answers. To be impertinent, insolent, and, if necessary, subversive.
art perfect produce
How did Haydn and Mozart produce such vast quantities of formally perfect art? They worked from a perfect formula. In music, Beethoven was the Great Emancipator.
symphony shostakovich form
The critics say that Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony has no form. They are wrong; it has the form of Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony.
mean greed sin
Capitalism: Nothing so mean could be right. Greed is the ugliest of the capital sins.
accomplish-nothing lust energy
The result of this bestial lust is an indiscriminate and promiscuous splaying of all of my energies- wanting all, I accomplish nothing; desiring everything, I satisfy nothing and am satisfied by nothing.
stupidity greed world
There is no force more potent in the modern world than stupidity fueled by greed.
yesterday news newspapers
Nothing could be older than the daily news, nothing deader than yesterday's newspaper.
children hell politician
Among politicians and businessmen, *Pragmatism* is the current term for 'To hell with our children.'
dark night may
Quantum mechanics provides us with an approximate, plausible, conjectural explanation of what actually is, or was, or may be taking place inside a cyclotron during a dark night in February.
nuclear bombs physicist
The one great gift to humankind from our nuclear physicists has been the nuclear bomb. How can we ever thank them?