Famous quotes
Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,269 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
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“You and I possess within ourselves, at every moment of our lives, under all circumstances, the power to transform the quality of our lives.”
Werner Erhard (attributed) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Only what is fated to die is capable of living. Only what dies lives. Why do you think Christ was killed? They killed him to prove that he wasn’t a god. But in killing him, they immortalized the perishable and transformed man into a god.”
Giannina Braschi (born 1953) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Thousands of people who say they "love" animals sit down once or twice a day to enjoy the flesh of creatures who have been utterly deprived of everything that could make their lives worth living and who endured the awful suffering and the terror of the abattoirs— and the journey to get there— before finally leaving their miserable world, only too often after a painful death.”
Jane Goodall (1934–2025) first seen 2003 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Ten Trusts (2003), p. xv
“The only excuse for a novelist, aside from the entertainment and vicarious living his books give the people who read them, is as a sort of second-class historian of the age he lives in. The "reality" he missed by writing about imaginary people, he gains by being able to build a reality more nearly out of his own factual experience than a plain historian or biographer can.”
John Dos Passos (1896–1970) first seen 1928 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Statement of Belief," Bookman, Sept 1928
“I took a stroll in the city. It was infernally hot. The usual evening hubbub around me. Lovers on the pavements, hurrying to cinemas and other places of amusement as if nothing had happened, nothing. Living their nonexistent lives. Or do they exit, and it’s me who doesn’t.”
Imre Kertész (1929–2016) said by 2016 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“You mustn’t forget about your future, Enrique." "I’m living for the present, Dad." "Ah!" he waved that aside. "The present is just temporary." ‘ I boiled up. "I know," I burst out. ‘It only has to be accepted temporarily — temporarily, but every day afresh. And every day ever more. Temporarily. Until we have lived to the end of our temporary lives, and one fine day we temporarily die.”
Imre Kertész (1929–2016) said by 2016 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In the rich countries, depending on the species, 80 to 95 percent of the animals we eat are “produced” in industrial breeding operations where their short lives are an uninterrupted continuity of pain. All of that becomes possible the moment we begin to regard other living beings as objects for consumption or reserves of meat that we can deal with however we please.”
Matthieu Ricard (born 1946) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“All other great men are valued for their lives; He, above all, for His death, around which mercy and truth, righteousness and peace, God and man are reconciled; for the cross is the magnet which sends the electric current through the telegraph between earth and heaven, and makes both Testaments thrill, through the ages of the past and future, with living, harmonious, and saving truth.”
Edward Thomson (1810–1870) said by 1870 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Of the systems above us, angelic and seraphic, we know little; but we see one law, simple, efficient, and comprehensive as that of gravitation,— the law of love,— extending its sway over the whole of God's dominions, living where He lives, embracing every moral movement in its universal authority, and producing the same harmony, where it is obeyed as we observe in the movements of nature.”
Mark Hopkins (educator) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“...something can be so much more than the parts it took to make it, and why people need things around them that lift them above their lives and make them feel the miracle of living.”
Wendelin Van Draanen (born 1965) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A man living without conflicts, as if he never lives at all.”
Confucius (551–479 BC) said by 479 BC at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Master of nuance and scruple, Pray for me and for all writers living or dead; Because there are many whose works Are in better taste than their lives, because there is no end To the vanity of our calling: make intercession For the treason of all clerks.”
W. H. Auden (1907–1973) said by 1973 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“And our latest project was Death. It's one of the hard ones—one of the big ones, too, I suspect. Possibly it may even become the attribute that's going to define the Creation for the Created: If not for Death, they'd be content to simply exist, but with Death, well, their lives will have meaning—a boundary beyond which the living cannot cross...”
Neil Gaiman (born 1960) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I would say, we can't allow ourselves to be frightened into not living our lives, and I think that we have to keep going and we have to keep going with the faith that thing will get better … And things will get better when we make them better.”
Oprah Winfrey (born 1954) first seen 2017 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview on Entertainment Tonight, as quoted in "Oprah Winfrey Offers Words of Wisdom in Wake of Deadly Las Vegas Shooting", KTVB (October 2, 2017)
“The Romans were stern and dignified, living hard, frugal lives and adhering to the traditional Latin virtues, gravitas, pietas, simplicitas, and adultery.”
Will Cuppy (1884–1949) said by 1949 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“At one point the driver said, "For God's sakes, you're rocking the boat back there." Actually we were; the car was swaying as Dean and I both swayed to the rhythm and the IT of our final excited joy in talking and living to the blank tranced end of all innumerable riotous angelic particulars that had been lurking in our souls all our lives.”
Jack Kerouac (1922–1969) said by 1969 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Well, Republicans [...] a lot of them have never made an honest living in their lives.”
Howard Dean (born 1948) first seen 2005 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Dean hits GOP on 'honest living'", Washington Times, Friday, June 3, 2005. Retrieved June 4, 2018.
“There is no such thing as society. There is living tapestry of men and women and people and the beauty of that tapestry and the quality of our lives will depend upon how much each of us is prepared to take responsibility for ourselves and each of us prepared to turn round and help by our own efforts those who are unfortunate.”
Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013) said by 2013 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Her brother's smart, he's got more sense than many, His patience long, but soon he won't have any, To find a job is like a haystack needle, 'Cause where he lives, they don't use coloured people, Living just enough, just enough for the city.”
Stevie Wonder (born 1950) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“From too much love of living, From hope and fear set free, We thank with brief thanksgiving Whatever gods may be That no man lives forever, That dead men rise up never; That even the weariest river Winds somewhere safe to sea.”
Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837–1909) said by 1909 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I've always wanted to blow up dams in order to save salmon, sturgeon, and other creatures whose lives depend on wild and living rivers. But that's not right. We need to blow up dams for the rivers themselves, so they can be again the rivers they once were, forever, the rivers they still want to be, the rivers they themselves are struggling and fighting to once again become.”
Derrick Jensen (born 1960) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Children born with Down Syndrome are not vegetables, nor are their lives demonstrably not worth living.”
Tucker Carlson (born 1969) first seen 1996 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Writing for The Weekly Standard in December 1996;
“This may be a lot of things, this moment we're living through, but it is definitely not about black lives, and remember that when they come for you, and at this rate, they will.”
Tucker Carlson (born 1969) first seen 2020 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On Tucker Carlson Tonight on the day of the memorial for George Floyd in Houston on June 8, 2020;
“What I know is that this country will be a divided society that will not be worth living in unless there is true racial equality for every citizen who lives in it.”
James Callaghan (1912–2005) first seen 1978 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech to the local government conference in Bristol (28 January 1978), quoted in The Times (30 January 1978), p. 3
“We fight for our beliefs, Queen Medhbh,” said Amergin, “just as much as we fight for our lives. We must continue to conduct our affairs according to those beliefs. If we do not then we have no justification for living. Let us question these people fairly and listen to their answers before we judge them innocent or guilty.”
Michael Moorcock (born 1939) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If one has left this entire system to itself for an hour, one would say that the cat still lives if meanwhile no atom has decayed. The psi-function of the entire system would express this by having in it the living and dead cat (pardon the expression) mixed or smeared out in equal parts.”
Erwin Schrödinger (1887–1961) first seen 1935 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On the conditions of the "Schrödinger's cat" thought-experiment, as presented in The Present Situation in Quantum Mechanics (1935), translated by John D. Trimmer
“Among the idle rich, boredom is one of the most common causes of unhappiness. People who have difficulty in earning their living may suffer greatly, but they are not bored. Wealthy men and women become bored when they depend upon the theater for their enjoyment instead of making their own lives interesting.”
André Maurois (1885–1967) said by 1967 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“As we learn to bear the intimacy of scrutiny and to flourish within it, as we learn to use the products of that scrutiny for power within our living, those fears which rule our lives and form our silences begin to lose their control over us.”
Audre Lorde (1934–1992) said by 1992 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[about his mother] Without her I don't exist. Without her, I wouldn't be doing this for a living. Without her, in four states it would still be legal to kill a man with a cappuccino machine. She touched a lot of lives.”
Christopher Titus (born 1964) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“There are times when you come across somebody that’s really impressive, someone that’s got a proper living and really does make a difference to people’s lives. Then I do feel a bit of a wanker, admitting I’m an actress. That’s hard to say to someone who may be making a difference. But I don’t know how I could change things.”
Michelle Gomez (born 1966) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“People living their lives for you on TV They say they're better than you, and you agree”
Jewel (singer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But they lived those extraordinary lives that can never be lived again. And in the living of them, they gave me a history that is more profound, more beautiful, more powerful, more passionate, and ultimately more useful, than the best damn history book I ever read.”
Utah Phillips (1935–2008) first seen 1999 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Track 13: "The Long Memory." Fellow Workers, Righteous Babe Records (1999)
“The multitude is the real productive force of our social world, whereas Empire is a mere apparatus of capture that lives only off the vitality of the multitude — as Marx would say, a vampire regime of accumulated dead labor that survives only by sucking off the blood of the living.”
Antonio Negri (1933–2023) said by 2023 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Sometimes I can feel my bones straining under the weight of all the lives I'm not living. (p. 113)”
Jonathan Safran Foer (born 1977) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Amidst the confusion of the times, the conflicts of conscience, and the turmoil of daily living, an abiding faith becomes an anchor to our lives.”
Thomas S. Monson (1927–2018) said by 2018 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Since the outbreak of war, Australians have been asked to join the armed forces and to make heavy sacrifices in many other ways for the preservation of freedom and democracy. The response by the people of Australia has been magnificent. But the words ‘freedom’ and ‘democracy’ must be more than a slogan. They must represent real and living things in the lives of ordinary men and women.”
John Curtin (1885–1945) first seen 1940 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Election speech in Perth (28 August 1940)
“There are moments in all our lives when we realize, even as we experience them, that we are living through events we will never forget, even long afterward.”
Orhan Pamuk (born 1952) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“At some point preoccupation with safety can get in the way of living full lives.”
Alan Hirsch (born 1959) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In fact, it is only through the New Testament that we can learn just what Christian faith is. … Open your Bible at any page you like, there is nothing about solving religious problems. Bible testifies that God exists and that he revealed himself through Jesus Christ. It shows too that the man who lives without God is not living right.”
Wilhelm Busch (pastor) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“From the great moments of their lives, many remember that the experiences of sharing love are much more honest and convincing than anything one could do for oneself. The joyful rush of living the highest principle of oneness and being there for everyone brings pervasive meaning and a sense of liberation, as if one has just broken out of prison.”
Lama Ole Nydahl (1941–2026) said by 2026 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The isolation that was so much a part of the city's psyche, the feeling that its ten million people were all living parallel lives that never intersected”
Michael Nava (born 1954) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Romance is the opiate of the dissatisfied, it anaesthesises them from the pain of their disordered second-rate lives [...] If romance is the opiate of the dissatisfied then surely nostalgia is the opiate of the disillusioned, for those who see all their dreams come true and find themselves living in a nightmare.”
Susan Howatch (born 1940) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Welfare is supposed to take care of and reward those women who have lots of children. It is truly strange to say we have to use tax money to take care of women who don't even give birth once, who grow old living their lives selfishly and singing the praises of freedom.”
Yoshirō Mori (born 1937) first seen 2003 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Quoted in "Japan's quietly accepted discrimination surfaces", Taipei Times (Jul 06, 2003)
“Unless you think that the majority of people are living successful lives, chances are that at some point you will have to act differently from those around you. Success can take many forms and it is often about standing out from the crowd or being above average, spotting when the crowd moves one way and making sure that you move the other.”
Nigel Cumberland (born 1967) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We will be out of EU programmes that do not work in our interests: out of the Common Agricultural Policy that has failed our farmers and out of the Common Fisheries Policy that has failed our coastal communities. EU citizens who have built their lives in the United Kingdom will have their rights protected, as will UK citizens living elsewhere in the EU.”
Theresa May (born 1956) first seen 2018 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Reality Check: Theresa May's Brexit letter BBC News (26 November 2018).
“But the capitalist, living on his income, gives nothing to his subjects. He lives by mere exploitation.”
George Fitzhugh (1806–1881) said by 1881 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The living are those who are a shame. Don't you think so? The dead do not give war to anyone; but what is alive, they do not find how to mortify the lives of others. If they even kill each other to end the hearts of others. With that I tell you everything. On the other hand, we must not hate the dead. They are the great thing. Are good. The best beings on earth.”
Juan Rulfo (1917–1986) said by 1986 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I found it difficult to believe that they are real people living real lives. For the first day I was constantly accompanied by the feeling that an unseen director would suddenly call 'Cut', and it would all come to a stop.”
John Wyndham (1903–1969) said by 1969 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We’re all living double lives: There’s the skin we wear on the surface, and then the one we keep to ourselves – the part of us that indulges in curiosities and fantasies we wouldn’t dare admit to the world, let alone ourselves.”
Emily Blue (born 1994) first seen 2018 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Explaining the story behind "Microscope" to Atwood Magazine, 2018
“We are all living in time-bodies. From the birth of this body, each of us is like a candle that has been lit and is burning down throughout the course of our lives. And at some point, the flame of the body will go out. But you are not essentially the body, the senses, or the mind, because they all report to something that observes them.”