Don’t worry about not being recognized by others; worry about not having any reason for them to recognize you.
[不患人之不己知、患其不能也]
Confucius (c. 551- c. 479 BC) Chinese philosopher, sage, politician [孔夫子 (Kǒng Fūzǐ, K'ung Fu-tzu, K'ung Fu Tse), 孔子 (Kǒngzǐ, Chungni), 孔丘 (Kǒng Qiū, K'ung Ch'iu)]
The Analects [論語, 论语, Lúnyǔ], Book 14, verse 30 (14.30) (6th C. BC – AD 3rd C.) [tr. Ames/Rosemont (1998)]
(Source)
(Source (Chinese)). Originally numbered by Legge as 14.32, but identified in modern translations as 14.30; the distinction is noted below. See also 1.16, 4.14, 15.19. Alternate translations:
I will not be concerned at men's not knowing me; I will be concerned at my own want of ability.
[tr. Legge (1861), 14.32]
My great concern is, not that men do not know me, but that they cannot.
[tr. Jennings (1895), 14.32; Jennings notes the unclear phrase could also mean "but that here is want of ability (in me to know them)."]
Be not concerned that men do not know you =; be concerned that you have no ability.
[tr. Ku Hung-Ming (1898), 14.32]
(A wise man) is not distressed that people do not know him, he is distressed at his own lack of ability.
[tr. Soothill (1910), 14.32]
Not worried that others don't know me, worried by my incapacities.
[tr. Pound (1933), 14.32]
(A gentleman) does not grieve that people do not recognize his merits; he grieves at his own incapacities.
[tr. Waley (1938), 14.32]
Be not concerned over men’s not knowing of you; be concerned rather over your inabilities.
[tr. Ware (1950)]
It is not the failure of others to appreciate your abilities that should trouble you, but rather your own lack of them.
[tr. Lau (1979), 14.30]
One does not worry about the fact that other people do not appreciate one. One worries about the fact that one is incapable.
[tr. Dawson (1993), 14.30]
It is not your obscurity that should distress you, but your incompetence.
[tr. Leys (1997), 14.30]
Do not worry about men not knowing you; rather, worry about your incapability.
[tr. Huang (1997), 14.30]
I do not worry about that others do not understand me, just worry about that i have no talent.
[tr. Cai/Yu (1998), 14.30, #370]
He does not worry about others not knowing him; he worries about whether he is capable.
[tr. Brooks/Brooks (1998), 14:30; they consider this a later interpolation, with 4:14 being the actual Confucian saying.]
Don't grieve when people fail to recognize your ability. Grieve for your lack of ability instead.
[tr. Hinton (1998), 14.30]
Do not worry that you are not recognized by others; worry rather that you yourself lack ability.
[tr. Slingerland (2003), 14.30]
Don’t worry about others’ not understanding you. Worry about your own lack of ability.
[tr. Watson (2007), 14.30]
Do not worry that other people do not know you. Be concerned about your own lack of ability.
[tr. Chin (2014), 14.30]
I am not concerned with not being known by others. I am concerned with my lack of ability.
[tr. Li (2020), 14.30]
Quotations about:
notoriety
Note not all quotations have been tagged, so Search may find additional quotes on this topic.
Celebrity is just obscurity biding its time.
It takes very little fire to make a great deal of smoke nowadays, and notoriety is not real glory.
When they went down to the bunkhouse for dinner the vaqueros seemed to treat them with a certain deference but whether it was the deference accorded the accomplished or that accorded to mental defectives they were unsure.
Cormac McCarthy (1933-2023) American novelist, playwright, screenwriter
All the Pretty Horses (1992)
(Source)
You have heard the story, haven’t you, about the man who was tarred and feathered and carried out of town on a rail? A man in the crowd asked him how he liked it. His reply was that if it was not for the honor of the thing, he would much rather walk.
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) American lawyer, politician, US President (1861-65)
(Attributed (1861))
When asked how he liked being president (c. 1861). Quoted in Emanuel Hertz, Lincoln Talks: A Biography in Anecdote (1939).
Celebrity-worship and hero-worship should not be confused. Yet we confuse them every day, and by doing so we come dangerously close to depriving ourselves of all real models. We lose sight of the men and women who do not simply seem great because they are famous but are famous because they are great. We come closer and closer to degrading all fame into notoriety.
Daniel J. Boorstin (1914-2004) American historian, professor, attorney, writer
The Image: A Guide to Pseudo-Events in America, ch. 2, “From Hero to Celebrity: The Human Pseudo-event” (1961)
