The Moor's Account Quotes
"What each of us wants, in the end, whether he is black or white, master or slave, rich or poor, man or woman, is to be remembered after his death."
"Silence taught me to observe. Silence made me invisible to those who speak."
"I hope, Señor Dorantes said, his tone halfway between a warning and a threat, that you haven’t been giving him some of that fruit you keep eating."
"Because the Indians are known liars, Señor Dorantes replied."
"The reckless hope came to me that he might, as a gesture of gratitude or goodwill, or even as a celebration of his gold and glory, free the slave who had set him on this path."
"The elders teach us: a living dog is better than a dead lion."
"I had sent three men into a life of bondage, without pausing to consider my role in this evil."
"Memories of my hometown came to me at odd moments, just like this, when I least expected them, as if my grief liked to ambush me."
"My beloved father reasoned, and a growing town required deeds and contracts, which he could easily and frequently imagine me drafting by the light of a candle."
"A nickname is something you use to tease someone, whether out of spite or out of affection."
"Everything has already been lived and everything has already been told. If only we listened to the stories."
"When we reach Apalache, we will be made sergeants."
"Return their women, I silently begged. Return their women."
"Esteemed señores, the cacique Kamasha has informed me that Apalache is a kingdom of many cities, but none is bigger or richer than this one."
"The safest thing to do, Señor Cabeza de Vaca said, is to return to Portillo and walk from there to the port."
"We cannot take their agreement for proof, he said. Remember, all of the prisoners you questioned said that Apalache had great quantities of gold."
"I have sent three scouting missions, the governor said, and none found a shorter trail to the ocean."
"It is easy to criticize a plan when you do not have to make one."
"I gave great thanks to God that we remained in Apalache after I was injured."
"The elders teach us: give glory to God, who can alter all fates. One day you could be selling slaves, the next you could be sold as a slave."
"I had entered the church as the servant of God Mustafa ibn Muhammad ibn Abdussalam al-Zamori; I left it as Esteban."
"A fine specimen, he cried. The auctioneer paced on the platform, pointing to my shoulders, my arms, my legs."
"Later, when I would learn that this river was called the Guadalquivir, the Arabic name would at once delight me with its familiarity and repulse me with its reminder of my personal humiliation."
"None of this, I thought, was any of our concern."
"I myself found it too painful to hear about the drudgery of their daily lives."
"His wife told him he needed to sell one of his slaves to pay back his debt."
"He does not appear to be worth the money you owe me."
"The warmth of the morning sun brought with it the smell of disease and death."
"Perhaps the miracle is that we are alive at all."
"Everyone has secrets, but no one wants to hear one’s private shame turned into public fame."
"The elders teach us: let my friends remember me; let all others forget about me."
"The world was not what I wished it to be, but I was alive."
"I was alive. I set my mind to surviving my trials, which would end soon enough, delivering me only to the eternity of death."
"No lies are more seductive than the ones we use to console ourselves."
"It is easy to blame the cacique, but he is only a man; he derives his power from other men, who will follow him for only as long as they believe in him."
"We were finally able to walk the land without fear for our safety; we had food, shelter, and companionship."
"I made up my mind to look upon the present as exactly what it was: it was all I had."
"I had grown so accustomed to leaving out details of my life story in order to survive that, for a moment, I considered making up some reason for the scar."
"Reader, beware: the things you say to impress a beautiful woman have an odd way of being repeated to you when you least expect them."
"We were providing comfort and service to people who needed it; we all enjoyed the many gifts that were bestowed upon us; and everywhere we were treated with respect."
"What is your name? he asked of the horseman who seemed to be the leader."
"I cannot help but think of Saint Francis. Consider: just as Saint Francis was taken away from his companions in Perugia, so, too, were these four Christians separated from their people in Florida."
"I felt keenly aware of the sacrifices my wife was making for my sake, and keenly grateful."
"The air smelled of burning candles and brazen ambition."
"The sheer number of forks and knives around my plate perplexed me, forcing me to watch my neighbors in order to know which ones should be used on which food."
"The wine is from Valladolid. Have you tried it?"
"The noise of construction in this city is unrelenting."
"Any details you can give about the nature and climate of the land you traversed... will be of great help."
"He hands out slaving licenses like a drunk hands out flowers."
"The only thing at once more precious and more fragile than a true story is a free life."
"All of us had grown a taste for this frothy and bitter drink."
"Dates do not matter... What they really want are clues for drawing a precise map."
"What you want is not something that can be asked for, it can only be taken."
"My story. I had journeyed through the Land of the Indians and witnessed many things."
"The empire’s men were all around us. We could never hope to defeat them with force. We had to use other means."
"Everything was lost. But a voice inside me said no—not everything."
"The more you ask him, the more he will want to hold on to you."
"Perhaps he could become famous for a success, rather than a failure."
"I gain nothing. I did not make the news, I merely tell it."
"Whatever Ahku decided, Oyomasot and I would leave in the morning."