“A man seeks his own destiny and no other, said the judge. Will or nill. Any man who could discover his own fate and elect therefore some opposite course could only come at last to that selfsame reckoning at the same appointed time, for each man's destiny is as large as the world he inhabits and contains within it all opposites as well. This desert upon which so many have been broken is vast and calls for largeness of heart but it is also ultimately empty. It is hard, it is barren. Its very nature is stone.He poured the tumbler full. Drink up, he said. The world goes on. We have dancing nightly and this night is no exception. The straight and the winding way are one and now that you are here what do the years count since last we two met together? Men's memories are uncertain and the past that was differs little from the past that was not.”

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About Cormac McCarthy

American novelist and playwright of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, known for his stark, poetic prose and exploration of violence, morality, and the American South. His works like *Blood Meridian* and *No Country for Old Men* redefine literary Westerns and existential fiction.

More from Cormac McCarthy (168 quotes) →
"A man seeks his own destiny and no other, said the judge. Will or nil…" — Cormac McCarthy | Daily Quotes