Jorge Luis Borges
1899 – 1986
About Jorge Luis Borges
Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986) was an Argentine poet, essayist, and short story writer whose fiction created a genre of its own: the philosophical puzzle-box story that treats labyrinths, mirrors, libraries, and infinite sets as vehicles for metaphysical inquiry. Born in Buenos Aires, he spent his youth in Geneva and Spain and returned to Argentina as a fully formed literary talent. His major collections — Ficciones (1944) and El Aleph (1949) — influenced every major novelist of the second half of the 20th century.
He was director of the Argentine National Library from 1955 to 1973, a period during which he went completely blind. Despite never winning the Nobel Prize — a famous literary injustice — he remains one of the most globally cited authors in history.
“You are not what you write, but what you have read.”
Quick Facts
- Born
- 1899
- Died
- 1986
- Lifespan
- 87 years
- Domain
- inspiration
- Quotes
- 5 collected
- Key Themes
- ReadingTimeLoveRealityBooks
Learn More
Wikipedia — Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis Borges's Famous Quotes
5 quotes
“You are not what you write, but what you have read.”
— Widely attributed to Borges — from various interviews; consistent with his documented philosophy of reading
“Time is the substance I am made of.”
— "A New Refutation of Time" (Nueva refutación del tiempo, 1944)
“To fall in love is to create a religion that has a fallible god.”
— Widely attributed to Borges — from essays and interviews; consistent with his documented philosophy
“Reality is not always probable, or likely.”
— "Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius" and other essays — consistent with Borges's documented philosophy
“I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.”
— "Poem of the Gifts" (1960) and various interviews — consistent with documented Borges statements
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Frequently Asked Questions
Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986) was an Argentine poet, essayist, and short story writer whose fiction created a genre of its own: the philosophical puzzle-box story that treats labyrinths, mirrors, libraries, and infinite sets as vehicles for metaphysical inquiry. Born in Buenos Aires, he spent his youth in Geneva and Spain and returned to Argentina as a fully formed literary talent. His major collections — Ficciones (1944) and El Aleph (1949) — influenced every major novelist of the second half of the 20th century. He was director of the Argentine National Library from 1955 to 1973, a period during which he went completely blind. Despite never winning the Nobel Prize — a famous literary injustice — he remains one of the most globally cited authors in history. Jorge Luis Borges lived 1899 – 1986.