Our acts make or mar us, we are the children of our own deeds.

Victor Hugo (1802–1885) French writer, journalist, human rights activist, politician

(Attributed)

Not confirmed or found in Hugo's writings.

The most common citation is is used in Henry Southgate, Things A Lady Would Like To Know, "November 18," epigraph (1875). However, I found a number of earlier references:

• 1874: Eugene Crowell, The Identity of Primitive Christianity and Modern Spiritualism (no attribution to Hugo).
• 1873: Maria Westmoreland, Clifford Troup: A Georgia Story, ch. 23.
• 1872-05-09: Massillon Independent, Vol. 9, No. 49 (column filler, no attribution to Hugo).
• 1872: Maturin Ballou, Treasury of Thought.

A similar quotation, attributed (similarly without citation) to Miguel de Cervantes or Jean Paul Richter, reads: "Good actions ennoble us, and we are sons of our own deeds."