Quotes from Fields of Fire

James Webb ·  496 pages

Rating: (4.5K votes)


“If they didn't want to know, they shouldn't have asked.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


“You know what we've lost, William? We've lost a sense of responsibility, at least on the individual level. We have too many people like Mark who believe that the government owes them total, undisciplined freedom. If everyone thought that way, there would be no society. We're so big, so strong now, that people seem to have forgotten that a part of our strength comes from each person surrendering a portion of his individual urges to the common good. And the common good is defined by who wins at the polls, and the policies they make. Like it or lump it.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


“My war is not as simple as yours was, Father. People seem to question their obligation to serve on other than their own terms. But enough of that. I fight because we have always fought. It doesn't matter who.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


“You know what we’ve lost, William? We’ve lost a sense of responsibility, at least on the individual level. We have too many people like Mark who believe that the government owes them total, undisciplined freedom. If everyone thought that way, there would be no society. We’re so big, so strong now, that people seem to have forgotten that a part of our strength comes from each person surrendering a portion of his individual urges to the common good. And the common good is defined by who wins at the polls, and the policies they make. Like it or lump it.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


“He sensed that it was all here, everything, and there was none of it there. All of life's compelling throbs, condensed and honed each time a bullet flew: the pain, the brother-love, the sacrifice. Nobility discovered by those who'd never even contemplated sacrifice, never felt an emotion worth their own blood on someone else's altar.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire



“I just look at you and say, ‘that used to be me. But it isn't anymore.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


“Well, what kind of hello is that? Besides. You wouldn't want me as a supply officer, Bagger. I'd fuck it up so bad you'd starve.”
― James Webb, quote from Fields of Fire


About the author

James Webb
Born place: in Saint Joseph, MO, The United States
Born date February 9, 1946
See more on GoodReads

Popular quotes

“Few people are spoken of in the way they would choose”
― quote from Njal's Saga


“Would you not marry even for love?'
'Love does not seem to bring anyone much happiness as far as I have observed. So I think the lesson learned is never to love.'
'The lesson is to love wisely,' he replied.”
― Sharon Shinn, quote from Summers at Castle Auburn


“The truth is the last thing that matters.”
― Philippa Gregory, quote from The Virgin's Lover


“But now the world, he thought, had taken them. He knew that this could suddenly happen. One day you just woke up, and there was somewhere that you needed to be.”
― Meg Wolitzer, quote from The Ten-Year Nap


“How do we know that our life really happened and that we are not simply accumulating details, making it all up as we go along?”
― Rachel Klein, quote from The Moth Diaries


Interesting books

Tell Me It's Real
(5.1K)
Tell Me It's Real
by T.J. Klune
Spider’s Revenge
(13.7K)
Spider’s Revenge
by Jennifer Estep
Poetics
(14.3K)
Poetics
by Aristotle
The Enneads
(2.3K)
The Enneads
by Plotinus
When God Writes Your Love Story
(8.1K)
When God Writes Your...
by Eric Ludy
The Last Enchantment
(12.9K)
The Last Enchantment
by Mary Stewart

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.