“In comparing the number of good books with the shortness of life, many might well be read by proxy, if we had good proxies.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Books (Primary source)
In Books, Emerson emphasizes that books are for inspiration, not mere imitation. He urges readers to engage actively with texts, using them to stimulate original thought and self-discovery, rather than passively accepting others’ wisdom.
“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“The years teach much which the days never know.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“The only way to have a friend is to be one.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary sourceMore quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson →
“A long life may not be good enough, but a good life is long enough.”
— Benjamin Franklin Primary source“Life is our dictionary.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson Primary source“Books must be read as deliberately and reservedly as they were written.”
— Henry David Thoreau Primary source“How many a man has dated a new era in his life from the reading of a book.”
— Henry David Thoreau Primary source