Archive for Mark Twain Quotes
On Learning Wisdom, Eventually
Posted by: | Comments“We chase phantoms half the days of our lives. It is well if we learn wisdom even then, and save the other half.”
- Mark Twain
There comes a time in one’s life where he may question, finally, all the distractions of youth that have taken so much time and energy, and see them for what they are: nameless, faceless phantoms of fear and want , without merit or purpose.
Even then, after one has given over half a life to such imaginary phantoms and ghosts, it is worthwhile to to finally see what is important, and then to pursue only that.
On Judging a Book by its Cover
Posted by: | Comments“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society”
-Mark Twain
One should refrain, as much as possible, from judging a book merely by its cover. But it is also best when a book has a clean, well-made cover.
On the Real Value of a Good Education
Posted by: | Comments“Education: that which reveals to the wise, and conceals from the stupid, the vast limits of their knowledge.”
-Mark Twain
On Spelling
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I don’t give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way.
-Mark Twain
Mark Twain would not abide spellcheck.
On the Power of Humor
Posted by: | CommentsHumor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place.
-Mark Twain
A person harboring resentment or fear is best served by finding their sense of humor.
On the Meaning of Christmas
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“The xmas holidays have this high value: that they remind Forgetters of the Forgotten, & repair damaged relationships.”
-Mark Twain, letter to Carlotte Welles, 30 December 1907
Christmas is love. All else obscures its essential meaning.
Image credit: caruba, courtesy Flickr
On Learning to See
Posted by: | Comments“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.”
-Mark Twain, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
It is with our eyes that we look, but only with our imagination that we see.
On Empathy and the Law of Proportion
Posted by: | Comments“Nothing that grieves us can be called little: by the eternal laws of proportion a child’s loss of a doll and a king’s loss of a crown are events of the same size.”
-Mark Twain, “Which Was the Dream“
All loss is profound. Comfort is found by seeing equally in other’s sorrow – and joy – a measure of our own.
On How a Little Certain Knowledge is a Dangerous Thing
Posted by: | Comments“It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so”
-Mark Twain
The more tenaciously a thought is held, the more irrational it becomes. But it ain’t necessarily so.
On Conspiracy Theories
Posted by: | Comments“I am an old man and have known a great many troubles, most of them never happened.”
- Mark Twain
Beware the boogie man in the dark corner, for he just may not exist.