Frank Herbert Quotes

“I must rule with eye and claw — as the hawk among lesser birds. - Duke Leto Atreides”

“Once you have explored a fear, it becomes less terrifying. Part of courage comes from extending our knowledge.”

“In adverse circumstances, every creature becomes something else, evolving or devolving. What makes us human is that we know what we once were, and, let us hope, we remember how to change back.”

“Let pressure pass over and through you. That way you can't be harmed by it.”

“It's so much more interesting to study a ... damaged world. I find it difficult to learn anything in a place that's too civilized.”

“A winner has more skills than a loser," Vor said, "no matter how you define the competition.”

“She laughed, and the duke might actually have smiled, though one could never be certain.”

“Oxthorpe stood. He could do nothing else. Her hands stilled, and her smile faded away. She stood and dropped into a curtsy. What did one say in such situations, when one knew a lady disapproved? “Miss Clay,” he said. “Duke.” She’d given the field laborer a happier smile than she gave him. Most everyone else had stopped smiling, too. This was the effect he had on others. He was the Duke of Oxthorpe, and though he did his duty by his title and his estate, he was not beloved. He did not know how to be beloved the way Miss Clay was.”

“The duke understood the danger in having an important conversation too often in one's head before having it with the intended party.”

“Her gaze collided with the duke’s. His eyes were a clear, pale green. Why was he staring so intently when there was hardly another woman less interesting than she?”