The Bursar Quotes & Sayings

Interesting thing, these fellows never seem to get the idea of perspective-'
The Bursar thought, or received the thought: that's because perspective is a lie. If I know a pond is round then why should I draw it oval? I will draw it round because round is true. Why should my brush lie to you just because my eye lies to me? — Terry Pratchett

I adore Kate Atkinson, her literary as well as her crime output. — Paula Hawkins

I'm sure the Bursar would not agree with those figures," said the Senior Wrangler sourly.
"That is so,' said Ponder, "but I'm afraid that is because he regards the decimal point as a nuisance. — Terry Pratchett

Rap was slowly becoming one of my hustles, but it wasn't my main hustle. But I come from a family of hustlers, so once I figured the hustle out and mastered it, I took it to my brothers like ... "we can flip this just like we flip anything else" ... and they were with it but also sort of slow to come all the way on board. — Yo Gotti

Isolated material particles are abstractions, their properties being definable and observable only through their interaction with other systems . — Niels Bohr

It's probably a miracle of existence." "Like pickles," said the Bursar, happily. Even the Fresh Starters went blank. — Terry Pratchett

Humility is the situation of the earth. It's there silent and accepting everything and in a miraculous way making out of all the refuse new richness ... transforming corruption itself into a power of life and a new possibility of creativeness, open to the sunshine, open to the rain, ready to receive any seed we sow and capable of bringing thirtyfold, sixtyfold, a hundredfold out of every seed. — Anthony Of Sourozh

When your life is on course with it's purpose, you are your most powerful. — Oprah Winfrey

Harriet grinned at Betty Armstrong, hearing the familiar academic wrangle begin. Before ten minutes had passed, somebody had introduced the word "values." An hour later they were still at it. Finally the Bursar was heard to quote: "God made the integers; all else is the work of man." "Oh, bother!" cried the Dean. "Do let's keep mathematics out of it. And physics. I cannot cope with them. — Dorothy L. Sayers

In fact he was incurably insane and hallucinated more or less continuously, but by a remarkable stroke of lateral thinking his fellow wizards had reasoned that, in that case, the whole business could be sorted out if only they could find a formula that caused him to hallucinate that he was completely sane.*
*This is a very common hallucination, shared by most people. — Terry Pratchett

I tried to find something real in essentially something thats science fiction or something-for me, anyways-not having an experience like this. — Ryan Gosling

There is but one honest limit to the rights of a sentient being; it is where they touch the rights of another sentient being. — Frances Wright

Ridcully sighed.
'All right, you fellows,' he said. 'No magic at Table, you know the rules. Who's playing silly buggers?'
The other senior wizards stared at him.
'I, I, I don't think we can play it any more,' said the Bursar, who at the moment was only occasionally bouncing off the sides of sanity, 'I, I, I think we lost some of the pieces ... — Terry Pratchett

Well, at least he keeps himself fit," said the Archchancellor nastily. "Not like the rest of you fellows. I went into the Uncommon Room this morning, and it was full of chaps snoring!"
"That would be the senior masters, Master," said the Bursar. "I would say they are supremely fit, myself."
"Fit? The Dean looks like a man who's swallered a bed!"
"Ah, but Master," said the Bursar, smiling indulgently, "the word 'fit,' as I understand it, means 'appropriate to a purpose,' and I would say the body of the Dean is supremely appropriate to the purpose of sitting around all day and eating big heavy meals. — Terry Pratchett

Sing, for it may be that your thoughts have plucked Some medicable herb to make our grief Less bitter. — W.B.Yeats

This is a lovely party," said the Bursar to a chair, "I wish I was here. — Terry Pratchett

Peaceful coexistence is hallmark of peaceful world. — Lailah Gifty Akita

Most of our notions about the world come from a set of assumptions which we take for granted, and which, for the most part, we don't examine or question. We bring these assumptions to the table with us as a given. They are so much a part of who we are that it is difficult for us to separate ourselves from them enough to be able to talk about them. We do not think these assumptions, we think from them. — Werner Erhard

Bursar?"
"Yes, Archchancellor?"
"You ain't a member of some secret society or somethin', are you?"
"Me? No, Archchancellor."
"Then it'd be a damn good idea to take your underpants off your head. — Terry Pratchett

A dichotomy,' said the Bursar helpfully. 'Oh, I don't think surgery is involved. — Terry Pratchett

Good so be would you if, duff plum of helping second A," said the Bursar.
The table fell silent.
"Did anyone understand that?" said Ridcully.
The Bursar was not technically insane. He had passed through the rapids of insanity som time previously, and was now sculling around in some peaceful pool on the other side. He was quite often coherent, although not by normal human standards. — Terry Pratchett

Willow bark," said the Bursar. "That's a good idea," said the Lecturer in Recent Runes. "It's an analgesic." "Really? Well, possibly, though it's probably better to give it to him by mouth, — Terry Pratchett

Though many schizophrenics become curiously attached to their delusions, the fading of the nondelusional world puts them in loneliness beyond all reckoning, a fixed residence on a noxious private planet they can never leave, and where they can receive no visitors. — Andrew Solomon