Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,161,747 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
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Fear
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“But destroying white privilege only boosted white fear.”
Harry Turtledove (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Oderint dum metuant,” O’Doull murmured…. “But it means, ‘let them hate, as long as they fear.’” “Three words,” McDougald said admiringly. “Boy, that packs more into three words than anything this side of ‘I love you.’”
Harry Turtledove (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“And fear not lest Existence closing your Account, and mine, should know the like no more; The Eternal Saki from that Bowl has pour'd Millions of Bubbles like us, and will pour.”
Omar Khayyám (1048–1131) said by 1131 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: XLVI (1889)
“You know the secret of this life my dear Then why remain a prey to useless fear? Bend things to suit your whims you cannot; yet Cheer up for the few moments you are here.”
Omar Khayyám (1048–1131) said by 1131 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Finance was the power that the people had most to fear. It made States and Kings and Cabinets, and even Liberal Cabinets, mere puppets to dance when the Rothschilds pulled the strings. The Labour party had made its protest, and they were proud of it.”
Keir Hardie (1856–1915) first seen 1908 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech in Newport, Monmouthshire (10 June 1908), quoted in The Times (11 June 1908), p. 10
“Animals in the wild lead lives of compulsion and necessity within an unforgiving social hierarchy in an environment where the supply of fear is high and the supply of food is low and where territory must constantly be defended and parasites forever endured.”
Yann Martel (born 1963) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“One word more,” Foul said, “a final caution: Do not forget whom to fear at the last. I have had to be content with killing and torment. But now my plans are laid, and I have begun. I shall not rest until I have eradicated hope from the Earth. Think on that, and be dismayed!”
Stephen R. Donaldson (born 1947) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Then why do you delay? Why do you fear?” Because I am mortal, weak. The way is only clear—not sure. In my time, I have been a seer and oracle. Now I—I desire a sign. I require to see.”
Stephen R. Donaldson (born 1947) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[T]errorists are desperate assholes who see no institutionalized recourse to address their grievances, so they resort to random acts of violence in order to instill fear into the general population.”
“Generalized statements … which instill nebulous fear without specific information are exactly in line with the goals of terrorism. .”
“It was senseless, as— I held my breath, feeling myself shiver with fear— as Billy's blindness was senseless.”
Chaim Potok (1929–2002) said by 2002 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am in favour of courage—who is ever not in the abstract?—but not of treating it as a substitute for wisdom, as I fear we are currently in danger of doing.”
Roy Jenkins (1920–2003) first seen 2002 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech in the House of Lords (24 September 2002) shortly before the Iraq War
“Mr. Greenwood, when moving the Amendment yesterday, told us that the war would shake many strongly held views. I fear that this war will do very much more than that. The war will bring about changes which may be fundamental and revolutionary in the economic and social life of this country. On that we are all agreed.”
Anthony Eden (1897–1977) first seen 1939 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech to the House of Commons (6 December 1939)
“Give into love or live in fear”
Jonathan Larson (1960–1996) said by 1996 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Immoral to a degree — and probably more than a degree — they certainly were. But they had the satisfaction that their life was the notorious life of Antioch, delectably sensual, in absolute good taste. To give up all this, indeed, for what? His hot air about the false gods, his boring self-advertisement, his childish fear of the theatre, his graceless prudery, his ridiculous beard.”
Constantine P. Cavafy (1863–1933) said by 1933 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Hell is gone and heaven's here, there’s nothing left for you to fear.”
Robbie Williams (born 1974) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“At this moment the doctrine of force bars the way to settlement and fills the world with envy, hatred, malice, and all uncharitableness. But if the doctrine of force were once abandoned, so that the fear of war that stalks the world was lifted, all outstanding questions would become easier to solve.”
Edward Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax (1881–1959) first seen 1939 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech to the annual dinner of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (29 June 1939), quoted in The Times (30 June 1939), p. 9
“My small experience in the conquest of fear can be condensed into these four words: Calmly resting! quiet trust! That amid the turmoil of the time and the feverishness of our days it is always easy I do not pretend. Still less do I pretend that I accomplish it. I have said, a few lines above, that I tried. Trying is as far as I have gone; but even trying is productive of wonderful results.”
Basil King (1859–1928) said by 1928 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“...I'm not able to fear death... We will all turn skeletons and everything shall end. The skeleton becomes, therefore, the most radical form of nudity.”
José Saramago (1922–2010) first seen 2005 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: ÉPOCA Interview (in Portuguese), São Paulo, 2005.
“May all those languishing in hell come now to perfect joy. And may the stooping animals be freed From fear of being preyed upon, each other's food.”
Shantideva (685–763) said by 763 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It’s not only corruption that distorts the utopian impulse when it begins to take some specific social shape. The prospect of more freedom stirs anxiety. We want it, but we fear it; it goes against our most deeply ingrained Judeo-Christian definitions of morality and order. At bottom, utopia equals death is a statement about the wages of sin.”
Ellen Willis (1941–2006) first seen 2005 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ghosts, Fantasies, and Hope" Dissent (Fall 2005)
“I'm dreading the time that is not near As a man on a cross I have no fear I can't believe these words I'm saying You've got to feel your lines”
John Frusciante (born 1970) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A carefully preserved English accent also upped the fear factor.”
Zadie Smith (born 1975) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We brought a man back who should have died long ago. The present can't stand a man like that anymore. Now they want indecision and compromise and reluctance and fear.”
Mickey Spillane (1918–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Those that are hunted Know this as their life, Their reward: to walk Under such trees in full knowledge Of what is in glory above them, And to feel no fear.”
James Dickey (1923–1997) said by 1997 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“That's the eureka moment, when suddenly you know something. Your hands sweat, you get into all kinds of symptoms of tremendous excitement. First of all, it's fear. Is it right? And it's incredible humor. 'How could it be any other way? It had to be that way! How could we have been so stupid, not to see this?'”
Leon M. Lederman (1922–2018) first seen 1992 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: June 27, 1992 Las Vegas, Nevada interview with Lederman.
“Dear Snæfríður, is it not clear to you how disastrous your words were, when you said just now that you do not fear the eye of God watching over you?”
Halldór Laxness (1902–1998) said by 1998 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Loving can cost a lot but not loving always costs more, and those who fear to love often find that want of love is an emptiness that robs the joy from life.”
Merle Shain (1935–1989) said by 1989 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I need no bodyguard at all, for even the bravest men who approach me get weak at the knees and their hearts turn to water, whilst their heads become giddy and incapable of thinking as the sweat of fear paralyzes them. They know no other will except that of their King, who is something above, and below, this earth.”
Shaka (1786–1828) said by 1828 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Following his mother's death, as reported in Shaka Zulu : The Rise of the Zulu Empire (1955) by E. A. Ritter, p. 319
“Principles of Earth Democracy, #10: Earth Democracy connects people in circles of care, cooperation, and compassion instead of dividing them through competition and conflict, fear and hatred. In the face of a world of greed, inequality, and overconsumption, Earth Democracy globalizes compassion, justice, and sustainability. (p. 11)”
Vandana Shiva (born 1952) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Fear ye God that ye may not identify yourselves with aught but the truth, inasmuch as ye have been exalted in the Bayán for being recognized as the bearers of the name of Him Who is the eternal Truth.”
Báb (1819–1850) said by 1850 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A poem, a genuine one, does not need to fear the world; it stands up to it, even when a bell rings and an unexpected guest arrives to tell us, while the same coffee is still in our cups, of his fourteen years in captivity...”
Max Frisch (1911–1991) said by 1991 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Topography is one of my chief themes in my poetry...about the country, the suburbs and the seaside...then there comes love...and increasingly, the fear of death.”
John Betjeman (1906–1984) first seen 1949 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Radio Talk. BBC Third Programme (1949)
“In 1780, in 1783, and in 1829, that which had been denied to reason was granted to force. Ireland triumphed, not because the justice of her claims was apparent, but because the threat of insurrection overcame prejudice, made fear superior to bigotry, and concession triumphant over persecution.”
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (1792–1878) first seen 1859 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The life and times of Charles James Fox, Vol. 1 (1859), p. 242
“I'm glad that the secret is submerged in my heart, that in me is the end of what is for you the beginning. And be glad that you have in me an abyss into which you can cast everything without fear - as if into a second self - because your spirit has long lain there at the very bottom. I keep your letters like a ribbon from a mistress. I have the ribbon; write to me, I'll caress you again in a week.”
Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849) first seen 1830 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Chopin to Tytus Woyciechowski, 31 August 1830
“Instead of fearing the unknown, we must conquer our fear.”
Newton Lee wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The greatest want of the world is the want of men—men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.”
Ellen G. White (1827–1915) first seen 1903 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Education, p. 57, c 1903, 1952, The Ellen G. White Publications; Pacific Press Publishing Association.
“547. All Temptations are founded either in Hope or Fear.”
Thomas Fuller (writer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Professional opinion is almost inevitably against changes. It has been the operation of these and similar influences which has brought about, as I fear, a return to the old conception of what is called power diplomacy. To these conceptions, it is not too much to say, the idea of the complete opposition of war and peace was really foreign.”
Robert Cecil, 1st Viscount Cecil of Chelwood (1864–1958) said by 1958 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“the poet has no fear of recurrence and is easily intoxicated on Classical wine.”
Osip Mandelstam (1891–1938) said by 1938 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But regardless of whose fault it is, most politicians today are not human beings. You want to pry open their mouths and shout into the darkness, 'Hello! Is there a human being in there?' Buried under all that lust for office, all that fear of offending a contributor? I know there must be.”
Charley Reese (1937–2013) first seen 1993 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Today’s Politicians Aren’t Human Beings—They’re Androids,” Orlando Sentinel, (Aug. 29, 1993)
“I could never fear a God who kept a hell prison-house. No, not though he flung me there because I refused. There is a power stronger than such a one; and it is possible to walk unscathed even in the burning furnace.”
James Anthony Froude (1818–1894) said by 1894 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I've learned things about myself through singing. I used to have a certain dislike of the audience, not as individual people, but as a giant body who was judging me. Of course, it wasn't really them judging me. It was me judging me. Once I got past that fear, it freed me up, not just when I was performing but in other parts of my life.”
Julie Andrews (born 1935) first seen 2000 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel {February 2000)
“At 13, I was fearless. I looked at everything so positive. When you're older and been through it all, you know how bad it can get. There is a fear of failing.”
Michelle Kwan (born 1980) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The main source of psychopathic diseases is the fundamental instinct of fear with its manifestations, the feeling of anxiety, anguish, and worry.”
Boris Sidis (1867–1923) said by 1923 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It is time that the medical and teaching profession should realize that functional neurosis is not congenital, not inborn, not hereditary, but is the result of a defective, fear-inspiring education in early child life.”
Boris Sidis (1867–1923) said by 1923 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Human institutions depend for their existence and stability on the impulse of self-preservation and its close associate, — the fear instinct.”
Boris Sidis (1867–1923) said by 1923 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Hope and joy are crucial here; they are the fuel that powers the ongoing fight for equality. And while there is a lot of fear and uncertainty right now, it is worth remembering that progress -- while not always linear -- is always possible.”
John Oliver (born 1977) first seen 2022 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Last Week Tonight -- "Transgender Rights II" (ff. 0:25:46) (17 October 2022)
“[In this we may expect the article to be sold to] "the most eager buyer at a price which is just about the highest he is willing to pay, for in this case the most eager buyer does not know what prices the other buyers are willing to give [and] … each buyer fear that someone may slip in ahead of him.”
Kenneth Boulding (1910–1993) first seen 1991 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: p. 42 as cited in: Vernon L. Smith (1991) Papers in Experimental Economics. p. 516
“At the opposite pole from the gift is tribute - that is, a grant made out of fear and under threat. A threat is a statement of the form "you do something that I want or I will do something that you do not want.”
Kenneth Boulding (1910–1993) said by 1993 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source