Medieval Quotes

“Singing rose up from the convent, filling the woods with a peaceful echo that tried to penetrate her heart and smooth her features; but nothing could ease the pain of saying goodbye.”
― Kate Willis, The Twin Arrows

“Honor is a balancing act and only the heart can strike that balance.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“Youth believes itself immortal. There is a cure for such an attitude, but unfortunately it is a cure from which one never recovers.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“All people are, at heart, egocentric. We exist at the center of our own little universes. We believe that we are living out our lives as best we can, and that we have our own sphere of influence which exists of both friends and enemies. They in turn have their own friends and enemies with whom they interact. That is a given. But we, each of us, tend to put ourselves ahead of others because we believe that we are significant. We must attend to our own needs, desires, wants, and aspirations, because each of us is our own greatest priority. No one else cares for us as much as we do, no one else can exist in our skin. We think we're important. It is where our sense of self-worth comes up, where our egos reside, where "we" are. And we believe that each of our lives means something.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“Unfortunately, the world does not always act in a manner consistent with one's plans for it.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“At least I’m the one leaving. It’s so much easier to leave than to be left.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“You have to hold on and be patient. Pain lasts for a while, but you must leave room for happiness when you find it.”
― S.N. Lemoing, Powerful - Tome 1 : The Realm of Harcilor

“Fusing the doctrines of Plotinus and Proclus with the creeds and beliefs of Christianity, Dionysius the Pseudo-Areopagite combined the Neo-Platonic conviction of the fundamental oneness and luminous aliveness of the world with the Christian dogmas of the triune God, original sin and redemption. The universe is created, animated and unified by the perpetual self-realization of what Plotinus had called "the One," what the Bible had called "the Lord," and what he calls "the superessential Light.”
― erwin panofsky, Meaning in the Visual Arts

“In retrospect, I would have to recommend against epiphanies. They are difficult on an emotional level, and they also sometimes move you to foolish and inopportune acts, which was what happened in my case.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“You tug and strain like a young horse when it's first tied up at the stake, whenever you are tied by your heartstrings.”
― Sigrid Undset, The Wife

“What kind of person do you wish to be? A part of those who take action, who try the hardest, or of those who go with the flow?”
― S.N. Lemoing, Le royaume d'Harcilor

“My good friends, things cannot go on well in England, nor ever will until everything shall be in common, when there shall be neither vassal nor lord, and all distinctions levelled; when the lords shall be no more masters than ourselves. How ill they have used us!”
― John Ball

“Once again I felt light-headed, but this time it wasn't from the scent of lilacs; it was from the scent of my own death.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“A modern woman sees a piece of linen, but the mediaeval woman saw through it to the flax fields, she smelt the reek of the retting ponds, she felt the hard rasp of the hackling, and she saw the soft sheen of the glossy flax. Man did not see 'just leather', he saw the beast - perhaps one of his own - and knew the effort of slaughtering, liming and curing.
Communities were smaller and whether our man lived on the outskirts of some feudal system, had escaped from it, or was entirely isolated, he would work alone, or daily with the same fellow-workers - conversation would soon languish.
But THINK he must.”
― Dorothy Hartley, Land of England: English Country Customs Through the Ages

“She felt hot tears soaking his shirt as she began to sob. “Forgive you? What king asks forgiveness of a slave?”
“Avin…” he gently pushed her away. “I have wronged you. Terribly.”
“Yes,” she said sadly. “But we both know it cannot be reversed. Not now. To do so will only throw Windbourne back in turmoil.” She wiped away tears with the back of her hand and looked towards the window. “I can no longer love these people after what they did, but I can acknowledge that they have suffered enough. The long winter was not their fault, but neither was the lie that made them angry. And now simple people have been promised a humbled queen, and you must deliver.”
He sighed. “It is too much to ask,” he said.
“Then don’t.” Avin gave him the smallest, and saddest of smiles.
“You are the king,” she said. “So train me.” The tears came then, and she softened in his arms. “Save me, Xander, lest I never feel again.”
“I am sorry,” he said into her hair. “I am sorry I didn’t come. I am sorry I was not the one to kill your father for the hurt he caused you. I am sorry that I caused you even more. I should have known better. I should have never believed the worst.” He put his forehead against hers. “Let me make it better, my love.”
― Ava Sinclair, Conquering the Queen

“Then you are no longer afraid of death, Your Majesty?” the lady asked, awed at the queen’s adventures. “No, I am no longer afraid of life.”
― Constance Jagodzinski, Crown Of Vipers

“The world is an ambitious business. It continuously expands and evolves. But people are lazy and God is far too lovely to do something about it.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“Wake up! You’re a sacred soul and glory is yours for the taking.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“Sir Wystan,” Ryla stated. “You have come. Is the danger quite near?”
“Not yet, little one, but it is always wise to be several steps ahead of it,” the old knight said gently.”
― Kate Willis, The Twin Arrows

“Some time later, I sat in the wine cellar, staring at the walls while cradling a wineskin in my lap like a child, murmuring over and over as if lulling the child to sleep, 'I am shat upon. I am shat upon'.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“I guess it really had been brave . . . because it was so bugger-all stupid, and if there was one thing I'd come to realize, ti was that bravery and bugger-all stupidity went hand in hand.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“I remember so many things [. . .] The problem is, only half of them are true . . . and the half which is true keeps changing places with the half which is false.”
― Peter David, Sir Apropos of Nothing

“Did reiser og nogle Mænd aarlig af stæd,
Som skal for Laugmanden aflegge sin Eed,
Laug-Rættes-Mænd Loven dem nævner;
Om hver den der sværger, forstaar sig derpaa,
Det lader jeg denne gang u-omtalt staa,
Til Dagen naar HErren indstævner.”
― Petter Dass, The Trumpet of Nordland

“The world eclipses and it’s just her and him. No it’s just her eyes and his soul. Her eyes expose and violate him, she turns him inside out. Then, her eyes drop him like a boring toy.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“she was like the merlin in pursuit of its airborne quarry, perhaps the snow bunting or a small meadow pipit; the avian prey is nimble but so is the predatory merlin with its inexhaustible stamina and unparalleled agility – round and round it chases the pipit, and the two flying at speeds almost impossible for the observer to follow.”
― Gregory Figg

“he said this turning his strong body to face the beautiful, stunning, breathtaking, astonishing, bewildering girl who was a princess and his one true love, Eodwyn. she had hair like raven wings and skin like snow that the dogs haven’t peed on yet and cheeks like cherry blossoms and eyes like a magnificent summer sky.”
― J.K. Ashton

“Waiting for one’s execution is worse than dying. To seek my beheading is glory. Who went to his execution willingly? Jesus did. Jesus even dragged his cross half way to Golgotha. I think he would have nailed himself to the cross if he had to.”
― Stefan Emunds, Gawain and the Green Knight

“Imagine the ancient society of India, and in fact all over the world, a few thousands years ago. In those days, rational thinking was quite scarce. Ignorance was the default mode of thinking. Only a handful of individuals were capable of higher intellectual thinking.”
― Abhijit Naskar

“I beg your pardon. Sometimes, it's true I can be stubborn.'
'Sometimes?' she added derisively.
'Quite often,' he tempered.”
― S.N. Lemoing, Powerful - Tome 1 : The Realm of Harcilor

“The whole appeal of medieval studies - the language, the literature, the history, the art and architecture - to immerse oneself in that world. That other world. Safely other. Other in almost every way, except that it was here. Look at those fields on either side of the motorway. Those low hills. It was here. They were here, as we are here now. And this too shall pass. We don't actually believe that, though, do we? We are unable to believe that our own world will pass. So it will go on for ever? No. It will turn into something else. Slowly - too slowly to be perceived by the people living in it. Which is already happening, is always happening. We just can't see it.”
― David Szalay, All That Man Is