Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803 - 1882
US essayist & poet
Source
Quotations
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All our progress is an unfolding, like a vegetable bud. You have first an instinct, then an opinion, then a knowledge as the plant has root, bud, and fruit. Trust the instinct to the end, though you can render no reason.
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Character is higher than intellect... A great soul will be strong to live, as well as to think.
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Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
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Don't waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good.
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Every great and commanding moment in the annals of the world is the triumph of some enthusiasm.
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Every sweet has its sour; every evit its good.
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If I have lost confidence in myself, I have the universe against me.
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Insist on yourself; never imitate... Every great man is unique.
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No great man ever complains of want of opportunity.