Gao Xingjian

“Various political parties, even if they're in direct opposition with one another, still say they are the spokesperson for the people. The writer must speak his own words and not get mixed up with politics.”

“If you're not perfectly conscious of yourself, that self can be tyrannical; in relationship to others, anyone can become a tyrant. That's why no one can be a Superman. You have to go beyond yourself with a 'third eye' - self-awareness - because the one thing you cannot flee is yourself.”

“A writer has to fully defend his rights and his own worth.”

“It's in literature that true life can be found. It's under the mask of fiction that you can tell the truth.”

“Reality is myself, reality is only the perception of this instant and it can't be related to another person.”

“If you want to do anything, do it now, without compromise or concession, because you have only one life.”

“I was born Chinese, and I write in Chinese. I don't think there's any need to evade this... to a writer, as to a person, what matters is not his political label or his nationality, but whether he is a person and whether his work is worth looking at.”

“As a male writer, women are always what men pursue, and their world is always a mystery. So I always tried to present as many views as possible on women's worlds.”

“אם האדם זקוק לשפה אין זה רק כדי להביע את רגשותיו, אלא כדי להקשיב לעצמו ולהכיר בקיומו בעת ובעונה אחת.”

“יצירה שאיננה משכנעת את המחבר אין בכוחה לנגוע ללבו של הקורא.”

“אינני כותב כדי להשאיר אחרי משהו משלי, אלא כדי להקל על סבלי.”

“נוסע אמיתי איננו חייב במטרה.”

“התרפקות על העבר כמוה כרעל.”

“האמת איננה קיימת אלא באמצעות ההתנסות.”

“הגורל מזלזל בבני אדם.”

“התרבות היא הכרח ולא מותרות.”

“לים הייסורים אין גבולות.”

“הזולת הוא מראה המשקפת את דמותנו.”

“האהבה היא אשליה המשמשת אותנו כדי להיכשל.”

“הציור מגיע אלינו ממקום שאותו אין בכוחן של מילים לתאר.”