Get Started
Home Authors Tags
Photo of italo calvino

Italo Calvino Quotes

Biography

Italo Calvino (1923-1985) was an influential Italian writer and journalist, best known for his imaginative and often fantastical narratives. He gained widespread acclaim with his 1957 novel "The Baron in the Trees," which tells the story of a young Italian nobleman who spends his life living in the trees. more Italo Calvino (1923-1985) was an influential Italian writer and journalist, best known for his imaginative and often fantastical narratives. He gained widespread acclaim with his 1957 novel "The Baron in the Trees," which tells the story of a young Italian nobleman who spends his life living in the trees. In 1972, Calvino published "Invisible Cities," a poetic and philosophical exploration of cities as imagined by the explorer Marco Polo. Another significant work, "If on a winter's night a traveler" (1979), challenged traditional narrative forms with its innovative structure. Calvino was also a member of the Oulipo, a group of writers and mathematicians dedicated to creating literature using constrained writing techniques. His unique blend of fantasy, fable, and philosophy continues to distinguish his contributions to world literature. less

Popular Quotes

"Without the expectation of betterment, life would be impossible"
Tags: Motivation, Personal growth, Inspiration, Resilience, Life
"The journey of a long-distance runner"
Tags: Perseverance, Discipline, Endurance, Sports, Fitness
"Memory is redundant: it repeats signs so that the city can begin to exist"
Tags: Philosophy, Existentialism, Existence, Memory, Repetition
"A writer’s life is an experiment in biography"
Tags: Personal growth, Life, Literature, Self-reflection, Writing
"Invisible cities are a dream that rises to the sky and falls back to the earth to become solid again"
Tags: Transformation, Literature, Dreams, Imagination, Metaphor
"In love, as in gluttony, pleasure is a matter of the utmost precision"
Tags: Love, Relationships, Passion, Emotions, Romance
"The only truths are personal truths"
Tags: Self-awareness, Self-discovery, Inner truth, Personal truth, Personal belief
"Everything can change, but not the language that we carry inside us, like a world more exclusive and final than one's mother’s womb"
Tags: Change, Identity, Culture, Language, Heritage
"The universe will express itself as long as somebody will be able to say 'I read, therefore it writes'"
Tags: Philosophy, Creativity, Existence, Connection, Expression
"Inside every man there are two wolves battling"
Tags: Philosophy, Human nature, Psychology, Metaphor, Struggle
"There is no language without deceit"
Tags: Philosophy, Perception, Human nature, Truth, Communication
"Every time I chose to act out a dream, I disfigured it, weakening the memory of another."
Tags: Reflection, Dreams, Memory, Consequences, Regret
"With cities, it is as with dreams: everything imaginable can be dreamed, but even the most unexpected dream is a rebus that conceals a desire or, its reverse, a fear."
Tags: Psychology, Dreams, Imagination, Fear, Desire
"You take delight not in a city's seven or seventy wonders, but in the answer it gives to a question of yours."
Tags: Philosophy, Wisdom, Perspective, Insight, Exploration
"The world, as seen today, is murky and subterranean."
Tags: Society, Darkness, Worldview, Hidden truths, Contemporary life
Instagram Icon Facebook Icon X Icon Threads Icon