Tracing Quotations
George Orwell? Jan Kalina? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A joke which ridicules an oppressive institution can help to undermine it. George Orwell once wrote about the subversive capabilities of humor and stated that a trenchant quip was analogous to a “tiny revolution”. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Every Joke Is a Tiny Revolution”
Francis Bacon? Bernard Baruch? Mary Gordon? Nina Wilcox? Walter A. Clark? John W. Carswell? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: One witty and vibrant individual who maintained a youthful outlook throughout a long life uttered a statement in the following family: This saying has been attributed to pioneering philosopher of science Francis Bacon and U.S. financier …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Old Age Is Always Fifteen Years Older Than I Am”
James Baldwin? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: According to the prominent author and social critic James Baldwin the craft of writing depends fundamentally on channeling experience. He employed the metaphorical phrase “the last drop, sweet or bitter”. Would you please help me to find a citation for his statement? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1955 …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: One Writes Out of One Thing Only—One’s Own Experience”
Mr. Dooley? Finley Peter Dunne? William Randolph Hearst? Willmott Lewis? Frederick W. Burnham? Clare Boothe Luce? Kara V. Jackson? Lawrence Weschler? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Here are four phrases describing the duty of a newspaper or religious institution: Would you please explore which phrase was crafted first and determine the identity of the creator? …