discworldtour:

It was said later that he came under bad influences at this stage.  But the secret of the history of Edward d’Eath was that he came under no outside influences at all, unless you count all those dead kings.  He just came under the influence of himself.

That’s where people get it wrong.  Individuals aren’t naturally paid-up members of the human race, except biologically.  They need to be bounced around by the Brownian motion of society, which is a mechanism by which human beings constantly remind one another that they are, well, human beings.

—Men at Arms

“And yet we say this.  Here in this cave at the end of the world peace is made between dwarf and troll and we will march beyond the hand of Death together.  For the enemy is not Troll, nor is it Dwarf, but it is the baleful, the malign, the cowardly, the vessels of hatred, those who do a bad thing and call it good.  Those we fought today, but the willful fool is eternal and will say—”

“This is just a trick!” Ardent shouted.

“—say this is a trick,” Bashfullsson continued, “and so we implore: come to the caves under this valley, where you will find us sharing the peace that cannot be braken.”

—Thud!

I AM NOTHING IF NOT LITERAL-MINDED.  TRICKERY WITH WORDS IS WHERE HUMANS LIVE.

“All right,” said Susan.  “I’m not stupid.  You’re saying humans need… fantasies to make life bearable.”

REALLY?  AS IF IT WAS SOME KIND OF PINK PILL?  NO.  HUMANS NEED FANTASY TO BE HUMAN.  TO BE THE PLACE WHERE THE FALLING ANGEL MEETS THE RISING APE.

“Tooth fairies?  Hogfathers?  Little—”

YES.  AS PRACTICE.  YOU HAVE TO START OUT LEARNING TO BELIEVE THE LITTLE LIES.

“So we can believe the big ones?”

YES.  JUSTICE.  MERCY.  DUTY.  THAT SORT OF THING.

“They’re not the same at all!”

YOU THINK SO?  THEN TAKE THE UNIVERSE AND GRIND IT DOWN TO THE FINEST POWDER AND SIEVE IT THROUGH THE FINEST SIEVE AND THEN SHOW ME ONE ATOM OF JUSTICE, ONE MOLECULE OF MERCY.  AND YET—  Death waved a hand.  AND YET YOU ACT AS IF THERE IS SOME IDEAL ORDER IN THE WORLD, AS IF THERE IS SOME… SOME RIGHTNESS IN THE UNIVERSE BY WHICH IT MAY BE JUDGED.

“Yes, but people have got to believe that, or what’s the point—”

MY POINT EXACTLY.

She tried to assemble her thoughts.

THERE IS A PLACE WHERE TWO GALAXIES HAVE BEEN COLLIDING FOR A MILLION YEARS, said Death, apropos of nothing.  DON’T TRY TO TELL ME THAT’S RIGHT.

“Yes, but people don’t think about that,” said Susan.  Somewhere there was a bed…

CORRECT.  STARS EXPLODE, WORLDS COLLIDE, THERE’S HARDLY ANYWHERE IN THE UNIVERSE WHERE HUMANS CAN LIVE WITHOUT BEING FROZEN OR FRIED, AND YET YOU BELIEVE THAT A… A BED IS A NORMAL THING.  IT IS THE MOST AMAZING TALENT.

“Talent?”

OH, YES.  A VERY SPECIAL KIND OF STUPIDITY.  YOU THINK THE WHOLE UNIVERSE IS INSIDE YOUR HEADS.

“You make us sound mad,” said Susan.  A nice warm bed…

NO.  YOU NEED TO BELIEVE IN THINGS THAT AREN’T TRUE.  HOW ELSE CAN THEY BECOME? said Death, helping her up on to Binky.

—Hogfather

“People as things, that’s where it starts.”

“Oh, I’m sure there are worse crimes—”

“But they starts with thinking about people as things…”

—Carpe Jugulum

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beautiful