The Remains of the Day

"I have been ordered about too long to question now."

"A butler's task is to serve, not to judge."

"To question one's own decision-making is to question one's very identity."

"The future, after all, does not yet exist."

"One must not allow the heart to rule the head in matters of professional conduct."

"I can't even say I made my own mistakes."

"The banality of evil is, after all, not without its philosophical merit."

"A man of great capability must not allow sentiment to diminish his performance."

"One must be prepared to challenge the prevailing mood of one's times."

"I have come to realize that the very things I have long cultivated have been to the detriment of myself."

"A butler's duty is not to surrender his professional authority."

"One's entire life could be said to be 'moments like this'."

"The evening light... it is so easy to miss such things."

"She has gone. There is no purpose in thinking of her further."

"The job I perform day in, day out is not to offer my own opinions."

"I can't even say I made my own mistakes, really."

"One doesn't engage in physical assertion with an employer."

"I have simply gotten old, perhaps without ever being young."

"What is pertinent is the calmness of that beauty, its sense of restraint."

"I can't even say I made my own mistakes. Really, one has to ask oneself: what dignity is there in that?"

"One must learn to accept what cannot be changed."

"The dignity of a profession lies in its execution."

"It is perhaps not too late to pursue certain matters."

"One cannot escape the consequences of one's choices."

"A butler must remember his place at all times."

"I find myself contemplating paths not taken."

"This house has been my life's work."

"One must be prepared for unexpected turns of events."

"The future stretches before one with certain possibilities."

"A man of true dignity acts according to his principles."