“Good criticism is very rare, and always precious.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Culture (Primary source)
In Culture, Emerson argues that true education involves the harmonious development of all human faculties—intellectual, moral, and aesthetic. It’s about cultivating the whole individual to achieve self-mastery and live a rich, authentic life, rather than merely accumulating facts.
“Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“It was for beauty that the world was made.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The true test of civilization is, not the census, nor the size of cities, nor the crops—no, but the kind of man the country turns out.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary sourceMore quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson →