WIST Quotations

L'Engle, Madeleine -- Speech (1983-11-16), “Dare To Be Creative,” Lecture, Library of Congress, Washington, DC

Dave — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 22:10:31 +0000

The writer whose words are going to be read by children has a heavy responsibility. And yet, despite the undeniable fact that the children’s minds are tender, they are also far more tough than many people realize, and they have an openness and an ability to grapple with difficult concepts which many adults have lost. Writers of children’s literature are set apart by their willingness to confront difficult questions.

Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007) American writer
Speech (1983-11-16), “Dare To Be Creative,” Lecture, Library of Congress, Washington, DC

L'Engle, Madeleine -- Speech (1983-11-16), “Dare To Be Creative,” Lecture, Library of Congress, Washington, DC

Dave — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 18:10:08 +0000

We think because we have words, not the other way around, and the greater our vocabulary, the greater our ability to think conceptually. The first people a dictator puts in jail are the writers, the teachers, the librarians — because these people are dangerous. They have enough vocabulary to recognize injustice and to speak out loudly about it. Let us have the courage to go on being dangerous people.

Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007) American writer
Speech (1983-11-16), “Dare To Be Creative,” Lecture, Library of Congress, Washington, DC

Chamfort, Nicolas -- Products of Perfected Civilization [Produits de la Civilisation Perfectionée], Part 1 “Maxims and Thoughts [Maximes et Pensées],” ch. 2, ¶ 145 (1795) [tr. Parmée (2003), ¶ 115]

Dave — Mon, 27 Jan 2025 17:04:34 +0000

Men’s ideas are like card-playing or any other game. Ideas which in the past I’ve seen considered reckless have since become commonplace, almost trivial, and adopted by men unworthy of sharing them. Ideas which now seem extraordinary will be regarded feeble and perfectly ordinary by our descendants.

[Les idées des hommes sont comme les cartes et autres jeux. Des idées que j’ai vu autrefois regarder comme dangereuses et trop hardies, sont depuis devenues communes, et presque triviales, et ont descendu jusqu’à des hommes peu dignes d’elles. Quelques-unes de celles à qui nous donnons le nom d’audacieuses seront vues comme faibles et communes par nos descendans.]

Nicolas Chamfort (1741–1794) French writer, epigrammist (b. Nicolas-Sébastien Roch)
Products of Perfected Civilization [Produits de la Civilisation Perfectionée], Part 1 “Maxims and Thoughts [Maximes et Pensées],” ch. 2, ¶ 145 (1795) [tr. Parmée (2003), ¶ 115]

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

Men’s ideas are like cards and other games. Ideas which I remember to have seen regarded as dangerous and over-bold have since become commonplace and almost trite, and have descended to men little worthy of them. So it is that some of the ideas which to-day we call audacious will be considered feeble and conventional by our descendants.
[tr. Hutchinson (1902), "The Cynic's Breviary"]

Man's ideas are like card & other games. Ideas which I once heard stigmatised as dangerous and over-daring have since become common and even trivial, and have sunk to be the tenets of quite unworthy persons. Some ideas which we call audacious nowadays will seem feeble and ordinary to our descendants.
[tr. Mathers (1926)]

The ideas of men are like cards and other games. ideas that at one time, to my own knowledge, were considered dangerous and rash, have since become general, almost commonplace, and have descended to men who are little worthy of them. Some of those that we call daring will seem feeble and ordinary to our descendants.
[tr. Merwin (1969)]

The ideas of men are like cards and other games. Some ideas, which formerly I observed to be considered dangerous and intemperate, have since become universal, even trivial, and have been adopted by men scarcely worthy of them. Some notions which we call bold will be regarded as feeble and commonplace by our descendants.
[tr. Pearson (1973)]

Bierce, Ambrose -- “Innate,” The Cynic’s Word Book (1906)

Dave — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 21:51:30 +0000

INNATE, adj. Natural; inherent — as, innate ideas, that is to say, ideas that we are born with, having had them previously imparted to us. The doctrine of innate ideas is one of the most admirable faiths of philosophy, being itself an innate idea and therefore inaccessible to disproof, though Locke foolishly supposed himself to have given it “a black eye.” Among innate ideas may be mentioned the belief in one’s ability to conduct a newspaper, in the greatness of one’s country, in the superiority of one’s civilization, in the importance of one’s personal affairs, and in the interesting nature of one’s diseases.

Ambrose Bierce (1842–1914?) American writer and journalist
“Innate,” The Cynic’s Word Book (1906)

Referencing English philosopher John Locke (1632-1704) who argued against the notion of innate ideas in An Esssay Concerning Human Understanding, Book 1 (1690).

Included in The Devil's Dictionary (1911). Originally published in the "Devil's Dictionary" column in the San Francisco Wasp (1885-10-17).