“It was for beauty that the world was made.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Beauty (Primary source)
In Beauty, Emerson explores how beauty in nature and art reflects a deeper spiritual truth and moral order. He argues that true beauty is not just aesthetic pleasure but a manifestation of the divine, elevating the soul and inspiring virtue.
“The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The law of nature is, do the thing, and you shall have the power: but they who do not the thing have not the power.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary sourceMore quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson →
“But man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated.”
— Ernest Hemingway Primary source“Beauty is the quality which makes to endure.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The noblest question in the world is, what good may I do in it?”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“Success is the most convincing talker in the world.”
— Napoleon Bonaparte Disputed