WIST Quotations

Roosevelt, Eleanor -- Memoir (1937), This Is My Story, ch. 2 “Adolescence”

Dave — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 16:39:05 +0000

Occasionally he took us on a picnic or a camping trip and taught us many valuable lessons. The chief one was to remember that camping was a good way to find out people’s characters. Those who were selfish showed it very soon, in that they wanted the best bed or the best food and did not want to do their share of the work.

Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American politician, diplomat, activist; First Lady of the US (1933–45)
Memoir (1937), This Is My Story, ch. 2 “Adolescence”
(Source)

Referring to her uncle, Teddy Roosevelt.

The same passage is included in her compiled 1961 Autobiography, Part 1, ch. 2 "Adolescence."

Kerr, Jean -- Essay (1970 ca.), “Partying Is Such Sweet Sorrow,” Penny Candy

Dave — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 23:42:02 +0000

To me having a party is something like having a baby. The fact that you got through the last one alive is not somehow sufficiently reassuring now.

Jean Kerr (1922–2003) American author and playwright [b. Bridget Jean Collins]
Essay (1970 ca.), “Partying Is Such Sweet Sorrow,” Penny Candy
(Source)

This essay appeared in the Ladies Home Journal prior being collected in the book, but I have not been able to determine the issue / date.

Auden, W. H. -- The Age of Anxiety: A Baroque Eclogue, Part 5 “The Masque” (1947)

Dave — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 20:06:45 +0000

Only animals who are below civilization and the angels who are beyond it can be sincere. Human beings are, necessarily, actors who cannot become something before they have first pretended to be it; and they can be divided, not into the hypocritical and the sincere, but into the sane who know they are acting and the mad who do not.

W. H. Auden (1907–1973) Anglo-American poet [Wystan Hugh Auden]
The Age of Anxiety: A Baroque Eclogue, Part 5 “The Masque” (1947)
(Source)

Jean Kerr, in her play (1973) Finishing Touches, Act 1, the character Jeff paraphrases the above:

Remember what Auden says. Man is the only animal that learns by being hypocritical. He pretends to be polite and then, eventually, he becomes polite.

The idea of habit becoming character, or practicing one's way to (usually) virtue, can be found in numerous variations. See also Aristotle (c. 325 BC) (and again, and again), Plutarch (c. AD 90), Hawthorne (1850), Reade (c. 1860), Clarke (c. 1860), Roosevelt (1913), Lewis (1952), Hoffer (1955), Eco (1988).

Tillotson, John -- Sermon (1694-07-29), “Of Sincerity towards God and Man”

Dave — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 17:38:17 +0000

But insincerity is very troublesome to manage; a man hath so many things to attend to, so many ends to bring together, as make his life a very perplexed and intricate thing. Oportet mendacem esse memorem, “A liar had need of a good memory,” lest he contradict at one time what he said at another: but truth is always consistent with itself, and needs nothing to help it out; it is always near at hand, and sits upon our lips, and is ready to drop out before we are aware: whereas a lie is troublesome, and sets a man’s invention upon the rack, and one trick needs a great many more to make it good.

John Tillotson (1630–1694) English prelate, Archbishop of Canterbury
Sermon (1694-07-29), “Of Sincerity towards God and Man”
(Source)

Sermon preached on John 1:47. For other who have used this thought (including the Latin reference from Quintillian), see Montaigne (1572).

Propertius -- Elegies, Book 3, Elegy 2, l. 25ff (3.2.25–26) [tr. Goold (Loeb) (1990)]

Dave — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 17:20:30 +0000

But the fame my genius has won shall not perish with time: genius claims a glory that knows no death.

[At non ingenio quaestium nomen ab aevo
Excidet: ingenio stat sine morte decus.]

Propertius (50–16 BC) Roman elegiac poet [Sextus Propertius]
Elegies, Book 3, Elegy 2, l. 25ff (3.2.25–26) [tr. Goold (Loeb) (1990)]
(Source)

Telling Cynthia his literary genius will provide a more lasting memorial to her beauty than mere material monuments.

Because of the (ironic) corruption of the manuscripts of Propertius and speculating from internal references, some 19th Century scholars (e.g., Lachmann) argued for a different division of the elegies into books, thus the translations noted which instead label this as Book 4, Elegy 2.

(Source (Latin)). Other translations:

But glory shrined in song can never die,
Talent alone wins immortality.
[tr. Moore (1870), 4.2]

Genius alone a name can deathless render,
And round the forehead wreathe the unfading crown.
[tr. Cranstoun (1875), 4.2]

But a name gained by genius will never perish by time: the honours of genius are deathless.
[tr. Gantillon (1884), 4.2]

[...] The honour accorded to genius is immortal.
[E.g. (1892)]

But that renown which poet's wit purchases, shall not so pass out of mind by the effect of time; poet's wit has such a pride as stands deathless.
[tr. Phillimore (1906)]

The name by genius earned dies not with time;
The lustre shed by genius knows no death.
[ed. Harbottle (1906), 4.1]

But the fame that my wit hath won shall never perish: for wit renown endureth deathless.
[tr. Butler (Loeb) (1912)]

[...] Fame due to the achievements of the mind never perishes.
[ed. Mencken (1942)]

But from remembered genius, fame shall flower.
It is only wit that death does not devour.
[tr. Carrier (1963)]

But a writer’s talent wins fame that will not perish:
The honour accorded such talent stands
Beyond death’s power.
[tr. Musker (1972)]

But age will not destroy the name achieved by talent;
Talent's glory stands -- immortal.
[tr. Lee (1992)]

But the name I’ve earned, with my wit, will not be razed by time: Mind stands firm, a deathless ornament.
[tr. Kline (2001)]

But a name acquired by genius will never fade
but stand a deathless ornament.
[tr. Holcombe (2009)]

Shakespeare, William -- Julius Caesar, Act 1, sc. 2, l. 135ff (1.2.135–138) (1599)

Dave — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 15:44:59 +0000

CASSIUS: You gods, it doth amaze me
A man of such a feeble temper should
So get the start of the majestic world
And bear the palm alone.

William Shakespeare (1564–1616) English dramatist and poet
Julius Caesar, Act 1, sc. 2, l. 135ff (1.2.135–138) (1599)
(Source)

"Temper" is used here in the sense of the temper of metal, reflecting on Caesar's just-described bodily weakness.

Ingersoll, Robert Green -- Lecture (1881-05-01) “The Great Infidels,” Booth’s Theater, New York

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 21:52:18 +0000

Christians have placed upon the throne of the universe a God of eternal hate. I cannot worship a being whose vengeance is boundless, whose cruelty is shoreless, and whose malice is increased by the agonies he inflicts.

Robert Green Ingersoll (1833–1899) American lawyer, freethinker, orator
Lecture (1881-05-01) “The Great Infidels,” Booth’s Theater, New York
(Source)

Hemingway, Ernest -- A Farewell to Arms, ch. 27 (1929)

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 21:12:06 +0000

I was always embarrassed by the words sacred, glorious, and sacrifice, and the expression in vain. We had heard them, sometimes standing in the rain almost out of earshot, so that only the shouted words came through, and had read them, on proclamations that were slapped up by billposters over other proclamations, now for a long time, and I had seen nothing sacred, and the sacrifices were like the stockyards in Chicago if nothing was done with the meat except to bury it.

Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961) American writer
A Farewell to Arms, ch. 27 (1929)
(Source)

The book is set in the Italian campaigns of World War I.

Stevenson, Robert Louis -- Novel (1886), Kidnapped, ch. 18 “I Talk with Alan in the Wood of Lettermore” [Alan]

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 20:55:07 +0000

I’ve a grand memory for forgetting, David.

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) Scottish essayist, novelist, poet
Novel (1886), Kidnapped, ch. 18 “I Talk with Alan in the Wood of Lettermore” [Alan]
(Source)

Suggesting he will soon "forget" the name of the murderer of a Campbell.

This chapter was originally published in Young Folks Paper, Vol. 28, No. 812 (1886-06-19)

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶314 (1665-1678) [tr. Chandler]

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 20:42:04 +0000

The extreme pleasure we take in talking about ourselves should make us afraid that we are not giving the same pleasure to those who listen to us.

[L’extrême plaisir que nous prenons à parler de nous-mêmes nous doit faire craindre de n’en donner guère à ceux qui nous écoutent.]

François VI, duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680) French epigrammatist, memoirist, noble
Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶314 (1665-1678) [tr. Chandler]
(Source)

Present in the 3rd (1671) edition.

(Source (French)). Other translations:

The exceeding delight we take in discoursing about our selves, may well make us suspect, that we allow but very little Pleasure, to them that converse with us.
[tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶314]

The excessive pleasure we find in talking about ourselves ought to make us apprehensive that it gives but little to our auditors.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶415; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶289]

The excessive pleasure we find in talking of ourselves, should make us apprehensive that we afford little to our auditors.
[ed. Carvill (1835), ¶353]

The extreme pleasure we take in talking of ourselves should make us fear that we give very little to those who listen to us.
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶324]

The extreme delight we take in talking of ourselves should warn us that it is not shared by those who listen.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶314]

The vast pleasure we derive from talking of ourselves should make us suspect that the pleasure of our audience may not be as great.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶321]

The keen pleasure we take in talking about ourselves should warn us not to be chary of giving that pleasure to our listeners.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶314]

The extreme pleasure we derive from talking about ourselves should warn us that for our audience the pleasure will be almost nil.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶314]

The vast pleasure we get from talking about ourselves should warn us that we are giving almost no pleasure to those who are listening.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶314]

The extreme enjoyment we find in talking about ourselves should make us fear we are not giving very much to our audience.
[tr. Tancock (1959), ¶314]

The extreme pleasure we take in speaking about ourselves, ought to make us fear that we may be giving scarcely any of it to those who hear us.
[tr. Whichello (2016) ¶314]

Orwell, George -- Essay (1948-06), “‘Such, Such Were the Joys …’,” sec. 5, Partisan Review (1952-09)

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 19:29:37 +0000

That was the pattern of school life — a continuous triumph of the strong over the weak. Virtue consisted in winning: it consisted in being bigger, stronger, handsomer, richer, more popular, more elegant, more unscrupulous than other people — in dominating them, bullying them, making them suffer pain, making them look foolish, getting the better of them in every way. Life was hierarchical and whatever happened was right. There were the strong, who deserved to win and always did win, and there were the weak, who deserved to lose and always did lose, everlastingly.

George Orwell (1903–1950) English journalist, essayist, writer [pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair]
Essay (1948-06), “‘Such, Such Were the Joys …’,” sec. 5, Partisan Review (1952-09)
(Source)

This autobiographical essay was drafted around 1939, revised around 1946, and then completed in May or June of 1948. Collected in Such, Such Were the Joys, essay 8 (1953), though the full, unredacted version was not published until 2000.

Roosevelt, Theodore -- Autobiography, Introduction (1913)

Dave — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:23:46 +0000

We of the great modern democracies must strive unceasingly to make our several countries lands in which a poor man who works hard can live comfortably and honestly, and in which a rich man cannot live dishonestly nor in slothful avoidance of duty; and yet we must judge rich man and poor man alike by a standard which rests on conduct and not on caste, and we must frown with the same stern severity on the mean and vicious envy which hates and would plunder a man because he is well off and on the brutal and selfish arrogance which looks down on and exploits the man with whom life has gone hard.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American politician, statesman, conservationist, writer; US President (1901–09)
Autobiography, Introduction (1913)
(Source)

Doctor Who (1963) -- 18×05 “Warriors’ Gate,” Part 4 (1981-01-24) [w. Stephen Gallagher]

Dave — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 22:45:14 +0000

THE DOCTOR: One good solid hope’s worth a cartload of certainties.

Doctor Who (1963–1989) British science fiction television series, original run (BBC)
18×05 “Warriors’ Gate,” Part 4 (1981-01-24) [w. Stephen Gallagher]
(Source)

(Source (Video))

Billings, Josh -- Josh Billings’ Farmer’s Allminax, 1878-05 (1878 ed.)

Dave — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 22:20:40 +0000

One haff the trubbles ov this life kan be traced to saying “Yes” too quick, and not saying “No” soon enough.

[One half the troubles of this life can be traced to saying “Yes” too quickly, and not saying “No” soon enough.]

Josh Billings (1818–1885) American humorist, aphorist [pseud. of Henry Wheeler Shaw]
Josh Billings’ Farmer’s Allminax, 1878-05 (1878 ed.)
(Source)

Popova, Maria -- Post (2012-04-30), “Orson Welles: A Rare 1960 Interview,” The Marginalian

Dave — Thu, 10 Sep 2026 20:37:01 +0000

Somewhere, some rights-holder — in this case, Kultur Video — decided it was better for the world that no one see the interview online than that people see it and no one profit from it. This, right here, is the deepest, saddest brokenness of current thinking on intellectual “property” as a wealth of humanity’s greatest intellectual and creative treasures rot in the clenched talons of rights-holders unable to monetize their properties and unwilling to make them available for free. As long as we continue to place commercial profit above cultural profit, especially when it comes to archival materials and cultural preservation, we are doomed to a future bitterly divorced from its past.

Maria Popova (b. 1983) Bulgarian-American essayist, author, critic [Мария Попова]
Post (2012-04-30), “Orson Welles: A Rare 1960 Interview,” The Marginalian
(Source)