Tracing Quotations
Poul Anderson? Arthur Koestler? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The following statement has been called Anderson’s Law and Koestler’s motto: I have yet to see any problem, however complicated, which, when you looked at it in the right way, did not become still more complicated. The words have been attributed to the prominent science fiction author …
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Mark Twain? Robert Ingersoll? Edgar Wilson Nye? John Phoenix? George H. Derby? Roscoe Conkling? John Fiske? Horace Porter? Henry David Thoreau? Hyman G. Rickover Dear Quote Investigator: Some writers use “we” as a form of self-reference. For example, an author might state: We base our opinion on the highest authority. A comically reproachful remark about …
Charles Alexandre de Calonne? Lady Aberdeen? George Santayana? Fridtjof Nansen? Nicolas Beaujon? Baron de Breteuil? Mrs. William Tilton? Dear Quote Investigator: There exists a family of entertaining sayings that cheerfully displays inordinate confidence: 1) If the thing be possible, it is already done; if impossible, it shall be done. 2) If it is simply difficult, …
Louis Armstrong? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The renowned jazz trumpeter and vocalist Louis Armstrong believed in the universality of musical appeal. I think he once said: When a good note’s blown, all the cats dig it. The underlying challenge of this adage is to remain open to the appreciation of multiple musical styles and genres. …
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Nicolas Chamfort? Marchand? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: You have previously examined a well-known comment comparing the construction of laws and sausages: Laws are like sausages. It’s better not to see them being made. I believe that a similar remark was made earlier by the Frenchman Nicolas Chamfort comparing justice and meals, but I have not …
Damon Runyon? Franklin P. Adams? Hugh E. Keough? George D. Prentice? Luke McLuke? Grantland Rice? Burns Mantle? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A famous verse in the Bible instructs readers that the advantages enjoyed by an individual do not guarantee his or her success:[1]Website: Bible Hub, Bible Translation: King James Bible, Section: Ecclesiastes, Chapter 9, Verse …
Voltaire? François-Marie Arouet? S. G. Tallentyre? Evelyn Beatrice Hall? Ignazio Silone? Douglas Young? Norbert Guterman? Dear Quote Investigator: Would you please explore a famous saying that apparently has been misattributed to Voltaire: I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it. The words above reportedly originated …
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Josh Billings? Artemus Ward? Will Rogers? Abraham Lincoln? Mark Twain? Friedrich Nietzsche? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Here are two versions of an expression I am trying to trace: 1) It’s better to know nothing than to know what ain’t so. 2) It is better not to know so much, than to know so many things …
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F. Scott Fitzgerald? Christopher Poindexter? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Goodreads is one of the most popular community websites for readers, and it includes a massive collection of quotations. Since anyone can share a quotation it is unsurprising that some of them are misattributed or inaccurately stated. Recently, I came across the following words which were …
Continue reading “Drunk on the Idea That Love, Only Love, Could Heal Our Brokenness”
Dorothy Parker? Leonard Lyons? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The famous wit Dorothy Parker was a friend of Alexander Woollcott, a notable writer for “The New Yorker” magazine. When Woollcott’s ancient cat developed a serious malady he was told by a veterinarian that the animal would have to be put to sleep. Uncertain of how to …