Henry David Thoreau
United States
12 Jul 1817 // 6 May 1862
Writer / Author / Poet
12 Jul 1817 // 6 May 1862
Writer / Author / Poet
Quotes
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Our moments of inspiration are not lost though we have no particular poem to show for them; for those experiences have left an indelible impression, and we are ever and anon reminded of them
A man cannot be said to succeed in this life who does not satisfy one friend
It is pleasant to have been to a place the way a river went
In accumulating property for ourselves or our posterity, in founding a family or a state, or acquiring fame even, we are mortal; but in dealing with truth we are immortal, and need fear no change nor accident
To inherit property is not to be born - it is to be still-born, rather
The rich man . . . is always sold to the institution which makes him rich. Absolutely speaking, the more money, the less virtue
If we will be quiet and ready enough, we shall find compensation in every disappointment
We perceive and are affected by changes too subtle to be described
I do not know how to distinguish between our waking life and a dream. Are we not always living the life that we imagine we are?
If we knew all the laws of Nature, we should need only fact, or the description of one actual phenomenon, to infer all the particular results at that point
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On Anger: "For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind."
Essays
Essays
On Destiny: "Our destiny exercises its influence over us even when, as yet, we have not learned its nature: it is our future that lays down the law of our today."
Human, All Too Human
Human, All Too Human
On Friendship: "A crowd is not company; and faces are but a gallery of pictures; and talk but a tinkling cymbal, where there is no love."
Essays
Essays