Quotes from Orson Scott Card

It was a new thing in the world, to have someone to talk to who was not substantially yourself.

teach, I teach, but no one learns. You, too, have great promise, like so many students before you

I don't have any knack for making people cry, Ela,' he answered softly. His voice was a caress. No, stronger, it was like a hand gripping her hand, holding her, steadying her. 'Telling the truth makes you cry.

Not that science is particularly pure, except compared to politics.

I saw you magnificent

Una esclava que se alegra es una esclava de todas formas.

Anton: "You're asking me?" Sister Carlotta: "God not being convenient, I ask a fellow mortal.

When armies benefit from being perceived as necessary, and war provides a means of gaining prestige and leverage over the government," said Loaf. "Then victory ends a very profitable game. So you play the game of war only fervently enough to keep your military budget high. Nations can get used to a fairly high level of combat attrition without noticing or caring that nobody's actually trying to win, and nothing but the lives of a few soldiers is at stake.

Sometimes David kills Goliath, and people never forget. But there were a lot of little guys Goliath had already mashed into the ground. Nobody sang songs about those fights…

We saved our lives, Ender.' 'No,' said Ender. 'That's what we thought we were doing, and that's what we should be judged for – but what we really did was slaughter a species that wanted desperately to make peace with us, to try to understand us – but they never understood what speech and language were. This is the first time they've had a chance to find a voice.

Why did he hesitate? He finally admitted to himself that he was like an American child who was almost completely certain about Santa Claus, but dared not ask for fear the answer would lead to the end of the annual largesse of Christmas.

Thou art fertile ground, and I will plant a garden in thee.

They came for gossip, and he gives them responsibility.

who had already taken humanity a step further than it had ever gone before.

Pacifism only works with an enemy that can't bear to do murder against the innocent.

we'll go fishing." "So it won't be heaven for the fish." "It'll be hell for everybody. But with good moments." "Just like our lives right now

Too late,' said Valentine. 'Tragedies are like that,' said Ender. 'And their tragic flaw was … muteness?' 'Their tragic flaw was arrogance – they thought they could terraform any world that didn't have intelligence of the kind they knew how to recognize – beings that spoke to each other mind to mind.

She did not understand all of human nature, but Ender had taught her this: to stop a human being from doing something, you must find a way to make the person stop wanting to do it.

I'll talk to her, but she's too old—or too young—to listen to reason.

Ningún ser humano es indigno cuando se comprenden sus motivos. Ninguna vida deja de merecer la pena. Incluso el más malvado de entre los hombres, si conoces su intimidad, tiene algún acto generoso que le redime de sus pecados, aunque sólo sea un poco generoso.

Pero la naturaleza de los subordinados era usar el poder de manera intrépida, ya que la culpa siempre podía achacarse tanto a los de abajo como a los de arriba.

Don't be one of the scurrying, struggling ants. Be the shoe.

Why is it that the people who should be in authority are usually the people who don't want it, while the people who hold authority are usually the two-faced schemers who've stepped on people's backs to get it?

think it's impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves.