“Indeed men too often take upon themselves in the prosecution of their revenge to set the example of doing away with those general laws to which all alike can look for salvation in adversity, instead of allowing them to subsist against the day of danger when their aid may be required.”
— Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War (trans. Richard Crawley)
“In short, I say that as a city we are the school of Hellas, while I doubt if the world can produce a man who, where he has only himself to depend upon, is equal to so many emergencies, and graced by so happy a versatility, as the Athenian.”
— Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War (trans. Richard Crawley)
“First keep thyself in peace, and then shalt thou be able to be a peacemaker towards others. A peaceable man doth more good than a well-learned.”
— Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ (trans. William Benham)
“Blessed are those who chat easily with their neighbours about their sport or their buildings or their quarrels, and honestly enjoy the talk of carpenters and gardeners.”
— Virginia Woolf, The Common Reader (1925) (1925)
“Blessed Germany, nursing mother of Art; generous England; Russia, my saviour; good friends in France, and you--noble hearts of all nations whom I have known--I thank and bless you all; your memory will be my comfort to my latest hour.”
— Hector Berlioz, The Life of Hector Berlioz as Written by Himself in His Letters and Memoirs (trans. Katharine F. Boult, 1903) (1865)
“Ask counsel of him who rules himself well.”
— Leonardo da Vinci, The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci (Richter translation)
“I was convinced again that between the dreams of the stage director and their realization there is a tremendous distance, and that the theatre is first of all intended for the actor and cannot exist without him.”
— Konstantin Stanislavski, My Life in Art (1924)
“The plot of the photoplay is usually based on the fundamental emotions which are common to all and which are understood by everybody. Love and hate, gratitude and envy, hope and fear, pity and jealousy, repentance and sinfulness, and all the similar crude emotions have been sufficient for the construction of most scenarios.”
— Hugo Münsterberg, The Photoplay: A Psychological Study (1916)
“The task of art is enormous. Through the influence of real art, aided by science guided by religion, that peaceful co-operation of man which is now obtained by external means—by our law-courts, police, charitable institutions, factory inspection, etc.—should be obtained by man's free and joyous activity. Art should cause violence to be set aside.”
— Leo Tolstoy, What is Art? (trans. Aylmer Maude) (1897)
“whereas by words a man transmits his thoughts to another, by means of art he transmits his feelings”
— Leo Tolstoy, What is Art? (trans. Aylmer Maude) (1897)
“Forgive me for having grieved you; but I did not myself suffer less when I no longer saw you near me. I then first keenly felt how dear you were, and ever will be to my heart.”
— Ludwig van Beethoven, Beethoven's Letters 1790-1826 (trans. Lady Grace Wallace, 1866), Vol. 2 (1826)
“Usefulness! It is not a fascinating word, and the quality is not one of which the aspiring spirit can dream o’ nights, yet on the stage it is the first thing to aim at.”
— Ellen Terry, The Story of My Life (1908)
Every quote in this collection was verified
against its original public-domain source — the letter, journal, poem or treatise it
truly comes from. No internet folklore, no misattributions.
Start free to bring these voices into your daily practice.