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98 Of The Best Quotes By Umberto Eco

Famous As: Medievalist, Philosopher and Author of 'The Name of the Rose' and 'Foucault's Pendulum'
Born On: January 5, 1932
Died On: February 19, 2016
Born In: Alessandria, Italy
Died At Age: 84

Umberto Eco, an Italian philosopher, literary critic, semiotician and writer of children’s books, essays, fiction and academic texts was among brilliant authors of twentieth century. He was known for captivating use of symbols, puzzles, languages and references. Some his best write-ups relay astounding allusions and narrative inventions. His perspective novel II Nome Della Rosa is a beautiful amalgam of biblical analysis, fictional semiotics, historical mystery, literary theory and medieval studies. Eco rose to fame with his acclaimed masterpieces like The Island of the Day Before, Foucault’s Pendulum and bestseller The Prague Cemetery. In addition to his rich works of art, he is also known for writing coherent essays based on contemporary culture. All in all his work is a beautiful representation of humor, irony, aesthetics, interpretations and ideas. An expert at literature and philosophy, Eco had a reputation of foremost thinker in academia. His works unveil lies, half-truths, conspiracies and facts, thereby compelling the readers to think beyond their realm. To commemorate the life of Umberto Eco, we have put together some quotes from his books and the man himself. Presenting a collection of Umberto Eco quotes about life, love, history, art, literature etc.

We live for books.

We live for books.

Umberto Eco
Books are not made to be believed, but to be subjected to inquiry. When we consider a book, we mustn't ask ourselves what it says but what it means...

Books are not made to be believed, but to be subjected to inquiry. When we consider a book, we mustn't ask ourselves what it says but what it means...

Umberto Eco
To survive, you must tell stories.

To survive, you must tell stories.

Umberto Eco
I believe that what we become depends on what our fathers teach us at odd moments, when they aren't trying to teach us. We are formed by little scraps of wisdom.

I believe that what we become depends on what our fathers teach us at odd moments, when they aren't trying to teach us. We are formed by little scraps of wisdom.

Umberto Eco
I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had an underlying truth.

I have come to believe that the whole world is an enigma, a harmless enigma that is made terrible by our own mad attempt to interpret it as though it had an underlying truth.

Umberto Eco
I love the smell of book ink in the morning.

I love the smell of book ink in the morning.

Umberto Eco
When men stop believing in God, it isn't that they then believe in nothing: they believe in everything.

When men stop believing in God, it isn't that they then believe in nothing: they believe in everything.

Umberto Eco
The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else.

The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else.

Umberto Eco
People are never so completely and enthusiastically evil as when they act out of religious conviction.

People are never so completely and enthusiastically evil as when they act out of religious conviction.

Umberto Eco
Absence is to love as wind is to fire: it extinguishes the little flame, it fans the big.

Absence is to love as wind is to fire: it extinguishes the little flame, it fans the big.

Umberto Eco
Then why do you want to know?

Then why do you want to know?" "Because learning does not consist only of knowing what we must or we can do, but also of knowing what we could do and perhaps should not do.

Umberto Eco
Thus I rediscovered what writers have always known (and have told us again and again): books always speak of other books, and every story tells a story that has already been told.

Thus I rediscovered what writers have always known (and have told us again and again): books always speak of other books, and every story tells a story that has already been told.

Umberto Eco
All poets write bad poetry. Bad poets publish them, good poets burn them.

All poets write bad poetry. Bad poets publish them, good poets burn them.

Umberto Eco
Love is wiser than wisdom.

Love is wiser than wisdom.

Umberto Eco
Daytime sleep is like the sin of the flesh; the more you have the more you want, and yet you feel unhappy, sated and unsated at the same time.

Daytime sleep is like the sin of the flesh; the more you have the more you want, and yet you feel unhappy, sated and unsated at the same time.

Umberto Eco
What is life if not the shadow of a fleeting dream?

What is life if not the shadow of a fleeting dream?

Umberto Eco
As the man said, for every complex problem there’s a simple solution, and it’s wrong.

As the man said, for every complex problem there’s a simple solution, and it’s wrong.

Umberto Eco
Fear prophets, Adso, and those prepared to die for the truth, for as a rule they make many others die with them, often before them, at times instead of them.

Fear prophets, Adso, and those prepared to die for the truth, for as a rule they make many others die with them, often before them, at times instead of them.

Umberto Eco
Entering a novel is like going on a climb in the mountains: you have to learn the rhythm of respiration, acquire the pace; otherwise you stop right away.

Entering a novel is like going on a climb in the mountains: you have to learn the rhythm of respiration, acquire the pace; otherwise you stop right away.

Umberto Eco
When you are on the dancefloor, there is nothing to do but dance.

When you are on the dancefloor, there is nothing to do but dance.

Umberto Eco
Any fact becomes important when it's connected to another.

Any fact becomes important when it's connected to another.

Umberto Eco
We were clever enough to turn a laundry list into poetry.

We were clever enough to turn a laundry list into poetry.

Umberto Eco
Where else? I belong to a lost generation and am comfortable only in the company of others who are lost and lonely.

Where else? I belong to a lost generation and am comfortable only in the company of others who are lost and lonely.

Umberto Eco
Nothing gives a fearful man more courage than another's fear.”

Nothing gives a fearful man more courage than another's fear.”" -

Umberto Eco
We live for books. A sweet mission in this world dominated by disorder and decay.

We live for books. A sweet mission in this world dominated by disorder and decay.

Umberto Eco
Monsters exist because they are part of the divine plan, and in the horrible features of those same monsters the power of the creator is revealed.

Monsters exist because they are part of the divine plan, and in the horrible features of those same monsters the power of the creator is revealed.

Umberto Eco
A dream is a scripture, and many scriptures are nothing but dreams.

A dream is a scripture, and many scriptures are nothing but dreams.

Umberto Eco
It is necessary to meditate early, and often, on the art of dying to succeed later in doing it properly just once.

It is necessary to meditate early, and often, on the art of dying to succeed later in doing it properly just once.

Umberto Eco
True learning must not be content with ideas, which are, in fact, signs, but must discover things in their individual truth.

True learning must not be content with ideas, which are, in fact, signs, but must discover things in their individual truth.

Umberto Eco
Show not what has been done, but what can be. How beautiful the world would be if there were a procedure for moving through labyrinths.

Show not what has been done, but what can be. How beautiful the world would be if there were a procedure for moving through labyrinths.

Umberto Eco