One of the great things about books is you can afford to do anything.
George R. R. MartinRead
As Faulkner says, all of us have the capacity in us for great good and for great evil, for love but also for hate. I wanted to write those kinds of complex character in a fantasy, and not just have all the good people get together to fight the bad guy.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote discusses the duality of human nature, highlighting our potential for both good and evil.
George R. R. Martin reflects on William Faulkner's observation about human complexity, suggesting that characters in stories should embody both admirable and flawed traits. He emphasizes the importance of creating nuanced characters who can exhibit love and hate, rather than simplifying them into purely good or bad roles. This perspective enriches storytelling, making it more relatable and realistic by acknowledging the moral ambiguities that exist in real life.
Themes
Human NatureComplexityGood And EvilCharacter DevelopmentNarrative
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, when discussing character development, one might cite this quote to emphasize the importance of complexity in protagonists.
More from George R. R. Martin
All quotes →I hate outlines. I have a broad sense of where the story is going; I know the end, I know the end of the principal characters, and I know the major turning points and events from the books, the climaxes for each book, but I don't necessarily know each twist and turn along the way. That's something I discover in the course of writing and that's what makes writing enjoyable. I think if I outlined comprehensively and stuck to the outline the actual writing would be boring.
George R. R. MartinRead
There is only one god and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: “Not today.
George R. R. MartinRead
I did not do it. Yet now I wish I had.’ He turned to face the hall, that sea of pale faces. ‘I wish I had enough poison for you all. You make me sorry that I am not the monster you would have me be, yet there it is. I am innocent, but I will get no justice here.
George R. R. MartinRead
But a voice inside her whispered, There are no heroes, and she remembered what Lord Petyr had said to her, here in this very hall. 'Life is not a song, sweetling,' he'd told her, 'You may learn that one day to your sorrow.' In life, the monsters win, she told herself.
George R. R. MartinRead
I write from this tight third-person viewpoint, where each chapter is seen through the eyes of one individual character. When I'm writing that character, I become that character and identify with that character.
George R. R. MartinRead
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