The Art of Tetman Callis

“How many concerns there are in the world, of which there’s no making head or tail, mostly because what persons do without any design is construed by such designing people, as chance to have their notice attracted to it, as having been designedly accomplished, and go on talking and talking till, instead of mending matters, […]

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“When there’s no trouble, one should make provision for the time of trouble.” – Cao Xueqin, The Dream of the Red Chamber (trans. H. Bencraft Joly)

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“The two words Yin and Yang are really one word; for when the Yang principle is exhausted, it becomes the Yin; and when the Yin is exhausted, it becomes Yang. And it isn’t that, at the exhaustion of the Yin, another Yang comes into existence; and that, at the exhaustion of the Yang, a second […]

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“All things, whether in heaven or on earth, come into existence by the co-operation of the dual powers, the male and female. So all things, whether good or bad, novel or strange, and all those manifold changes and transformations arise entirely from the favourable or adverse influence exercised by the male and female powers. And […]

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“The ordinary traveler, who never goes off the beaten route and who on this beaten route is carried by others, without himself doing anything or risking anything, does not need to show much more initiative and intelligence than an express package … If this kind of traveler is a writer, he can of course do […]

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“We made our noonday halt on an island where very tall trees grew, bearing fruits that were pleasant to the taste. Other trees on the island were covered with rich red and yellow blossoms, and masses of delicate blue flowers and of star-shaped white flowers grew underfoot. Hither and thither across the surface of the […]

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“The poorer people of the backcountry everywhere suffer because of the harsh and improper laws of debt. In practice, these laws have resulted in establishing a system of peonage, such as has grown up here and there in our own nation. A radical change is needed in this matter; and [Colonel Rondon] is fighting for […]

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“Now and then we were bitten and stung by the venomous fire ants, and ticks crawled upon us. Once we were assailed by more serious foes, in the shape of a nest of marabunta wasps, not the biggest kind, but about the size of our hornets. We were at the time passing through dense jungle, […]

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“To sit on a quiet deck, to have a starlit sky the only light above or about, to hear the water kissing the prow of the ship, is, to me, paradise. They can talk of the companionship of men, the splendor of the sun, the softness of moonlight, the beauty of music, but give me […]

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“Some people are Freethinkers from sheer stupidity … Some people are often religious for the same reason … Now, when beliefs are unreasonable, one should have all or none at all.” – Guy de Maupassant, “My Uncle Sosthenes” (trans. McMaster, et al.)

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“Rough-faced Vasily yawns. Like all cooks he scorns mankind. Cooks: they constantly have to handle the meat of dead animals and the greed of the living, which is why, when it comes to politics, a cook always seeks things that have nothing to do with him.” – Isaac Babel, “Evening” (trans. Peter Constantine)

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“If the human mind, ordained by an omniscient Creator, had been intended to be what it has become, exacting, inquiring, agitated, tormented—so different from mere animal thought and resignation—would the world which was created to receive the beings which we now are have been this unpleasant little park for small game, this salad patch, this […]

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“I say that Nature is our enemy, that we must always fight against Nature, for she is continually bringing us back to an animal state. You may be sure that God has not put anything on this earth that is clean, pretty, elegant or accessory to our ideal; the human brain has done it. It […]

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“One has not avenged oneself on a man by deceiving him, unless he knows it.” – Guy de Maupassant, “Useless Beauty” (trans. McMaster, et al.)

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“Why would I want to tell people made-up stories? I can’t stand made-up stories. It makes me sick to hear a made-up story. Look, if your story is a made-up story, then do me a favor and keep it to yourself. Me, I would never tell a made-up story about anything, let alone about myself. […]

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“Who can realise that the food in a bowl is, grain by grain, all the fruit of labour.” – Cao Xueqin, The Dream of the Red Chamber (trans. H. Bencraft Joly)

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“People are just sickening. Plain and simple, people are really just plain sickening. Where is the rhyme or reason to it? There is no rhyme or reason to it. You know what? Let me tell you what. I pity you if you think the day will ever come when you can count on people. You […]

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“Neighborhood adultery is no laughing matter; it’s a horror show, because everyone knows it happens and everyone has something to lose if it gets out. Most people like living in some form of authoritarian tribal containment, observing tradition and taboo. Mediocrities don’t like freedom; they like containment with a little hypocrisy on the side.” – […]

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“It’s much easier to say why a poorly written story is bad than why a really good story is good.” – Mikhail Iossel, Facebook, November 22, 2019

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“All art is manipulative; all art is self-indulgent. Any organization of narrative, every choice in characterization, is a manipulation. Novelists, composers, poets, painters, and other creators indulge themselves, liberate their fantasies in everything they create. Der Ring des Nibelungen is manipulative. War and Peace is self-indulgent.” – Ethan Mordden, Medium Cool

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“Religion is the expression of a people’s self-belief. When religion is strong, the popular tales treat world creation and the exploits of heroes. When religion is weak—when a people’s self-belief suffers doubt—the popular tales treat world’s end and the exploits of monsters.” – Ethan Mordden, Medium Cool

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“There can be no safe place, because the world does not consist of the good, the wise, and the generous taking on the wicked, the unreasonable, and the selfish. The world consists of dense psychologies of desire, fear, and resentment in a state of constant explosion. The world is not safe, because people are dangerous. […]

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“Study is a most excellent thing, and without it a whole lifetime is a mere waste.” – Cao Xueqin, The Dream of the Red Chamber (trans. H. Bencraft Joly)

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“Actions and consciously expressed opinions are as a rule enough for practical purposes in judging men’s characters. Actions deserve to be considered first and foremost; for many impulses which force their way through to consciousness are even then brought to nothing by the real forces of mental life before they can mature into deeds. In […]

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“It is only with the greatest difficulty that the beginner in the business of interpreting dreams can be persuaded that his task is not at an end when he has a complete interpretation in his hands—an interpretation which makes sense, is coherent and throws light upon every element of the dream’s content. For the same […]

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“The jackal moans when it is hungry, every fool has foolishness enough for despondency, and only the sage shreds the veil of existence with laughter.” – Isaac Babel, “The Rabbi” (trans. Peter Constantine)

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“It is fair to say that there is no group of ideas that is incapable of representing sexual facts and wishes.” – Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams (trans. James Strachey)

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“Words, since they are the nodal points of numerous ideas, may be regarded as predestined to ambiguity.” – Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams (trans. James Strachey)

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