WIST Quotations

Stevenson, Robert Louis -- Essay (1880-01/02?), “Reflections and Remarks on Human Life,” § 4.3 “Solitude and Society”

Dave — Fri, 29 May 2026 07:41:41 +0000

But solitude for its own sake should surely never be preferred. We are bound by the strongest obligations to busy ourselves amid the world of men, if it be only to crack jokes.

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) Scottish essayist, novelist, poet
Essay (1880-01/02?), “Reflections and Remarks on Human Life,” § 4.3 “Solitude and Society”
(Source)

A collection of aphorisms and musings, first published in the Edinburgh Edition of his Works, vol. 28 (1898).

Carlin, George -- Show (2008-03-01), It’s Bad for Ya, “Old Fuck,” Wells Fargo Center, Santa Rosa, California (HBO)

Dave — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 17:24:08 +0000

Another nice thing about getting old is you can leave any social event early just by saying you’re tired.

George Carlin (1937-2008) American comedian
Show (2008-03-01), It’s Bad for Ya, “Old Fuck,” Wells Fargo Center, Santa Rosa, California (HBO)

(Source (Audio); dialogue verified)

Variant: "One great thing about getting old is that you can get out of all sorts of social obligations just by saying you're tired."

Martin, Judith -- Interview (1995-03-06) by Virginia Shea, “Miss Mannners’ Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Internet Behavior,” Computerworld, Vol. 29, No. 10

Dave — Mon, 21 Jul 2025 17:48:51 +0000

You can deny all you want that there is etiquette, and a lot of people do in everyday life. But if you behave in a way that offends the people you’re trying to deal with, they will stop dealing with you.

Judith Martin (b. 1938) American author, journalist, etiquette expert [a.k.a. Miss Manners]
Interview (1995-03-06) by Virginia Shea, “Miss Mannners’ Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Internet Behavior,” Computerworld, Vol. 29, No. 10
(Source)

Twain, Mark -- Dictation (1907-07-30)

Dave — Mon, 20 May 2024 15:08:51 +0000

A banquet is probably the most fatiguing thing in the world except ditch-digging.

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
Dictation (1907-07-30)
(Source)

In Benjamin Griffin and Harriet Elinor Smith, eds., Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 3 (pub. 2015).

Also recorded in Bernard DeVoto, ed., Mark Twain in Eruption, "The Last Visit to England," ch. 1 "White and Red" (1940). DeVoto identifies it coming from the dictations of July-August 1907.

Santayana, George -- The Life of Reason, Vol. 2: Reason in Society, ch. 8 “Ideal Society” (1905)

Dave — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 14:11:03 +0000

Society is like the air, necessary to breathe but insufficient to live on.

George Santayana (1863-1952) Spanish-American poet and philosopher [Jorge Agustín Nicolás Ruíz de Santayana y Borrás]
The Life of Reason, Vol. 2: Reason in Society, ch. 8 “Ideal Society” (1905)
(Source)

McGinley, Phyllis -- “A New Year and No Resolutions,” Woman’s Home Companion (Jan 1957)

Dave — Wed, 29 Jan 2020 20:37:03 +0000

Gossip isn’t scandal and it’s not merely malicious. It’s chatter about the human race by lovers of the same. Gossip is the tool of the poet, the shop-talk of the scientist, and the consolation of the housewife, wit, tycoon and intellectual. It begins in the nursery and ends when speech is past.

Phyllis McGinley (1905-1978) American author, poet
“A New Year and No Resolutions,” Woman’s Home Companion (Jan 1957)
(Source)

Machiavelli, Niccolo -- The Discourses on Livy, Book 3, ch. 34, § 2 (1517) [tr. Thomson (1883)]

Dave — Wed, 19 Jul 2017 00:35:04 +0000

We can have no better clue to a man’s character than the company he keeps.

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) Italian politician, philosopher, political scientist
The Discourses on Livy, Book 3, ch. 34, § 2 (1517) [tr. Thomson (1883)]
(Source)

Alternate translations:

One can have no greater indication of a man than the company that he keeps.
[tr. Mansfield / Tarcov (1996)]

There can be no clearer indication about a man than the company he keeps.
[tr. Bondanella / Bondanella (1997)]

Twain, Mark -- Tom Sawyer Abroad, ch. 11 (1894)

Dave — Thu, 22 Sep 2016 00:29:11 +0000

The more you join with people in their joys and their sorrows, the more nearer and dearer they come to be to you.

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
Tom Sawyer Abroad, ch. 11 (1894)

Johnson, Samuel -- Essay (1758-06-24), The Idler, No. 11

Dave — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 13:06:08 +0000

It is commonly observed, that when two Englishmen meet, their first talk is of the weather; they are in haste to tell each other, what each must already know, that it is hot or cold, bright or cloudy, windy or calm.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Essay (1758-06-24), The Idler, No. 11
(Source)

Wilde, Oscar -- Lady Windemere’s Fan, Act 1 [Lord Darlington] (1892)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious.

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) Irish poet, wit, dramatist
Lady Windemere’s Fan, Act 1 [Lord Darlington] (1892)
(Source)