Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear. Don’t address me as Professor Camus. Call me Al.
Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just sit in those desk-chairs and pay attention to what I write on the blackboard.
The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself. That’s at the highest level, of course. Your aim should be to improve your craft.
Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth. That doesn’t mean that I will tolerate plagiarism in this class.
I know of only one duty, and that is to love. Marjorie, please see me after class.
In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer. I want you all to give me two pages on your spring break.
A guilty conscience needs to confess. A work of art is a confession. What did you mean, Jimmy, when you wrote that your protagonist wants to maim his teacher?
After all manner of professors have done their best for us, the place we are to get knowledge is in books. Did you all bring your anthologies to class?
You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer ‘yes’ without having asked any clear question. Why don’t you rephrase what you just said, Tiffany?
Don’t wait for the last judgment—it takes place every day. Yes, there will be grades in this course.
The gods had condemned Sisyphus to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back of its own weight. They had thought with some reason that there is no more dreadful punishment than futile and hopeless labor. Don’t let this dissuade you from revising again and again, which can really improve a piece of writing.
Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better. The final assignment is open topic.