Tracing Quotations
James Matthew Barrie? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The Scottish playwright and novelist J. M. Barrie created the beloved fictional world of Peter Pan and Wendy. He also offered cogent advice about not ascribing excessively malign intentions to your antagonists. Are you familiar with this saying? Do you know when it was spoken? Reply from …
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Robert Heinlein? Napoleon Bonaparte? Ayn Rand? David Hume? Johann Wolfgang von Goethe? Robert J. Hanlon? Arthur Cushman McGiffert? William James Laidlay? Ernst Haeckel? Thomas F. Woodlock? Nick Diamos? Question for Quote Investigator: It is easy to impute hostility to the actions of others when a situation is actually unclear. A popular insightful adage attempts to …
Erma Bombeck? Paul Dickson? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Recently, while sitting in the waiting room of a medical office I noticed that the potted plants were in dire condition. This was a bad omen, and I vaguely recall a joke about this situation. Can you help? Reply from Quote Investigator: The humorist Erma Bombeck …
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Erma Bombeck? Woody Allen? L. M. Boyd? Mark Hatfield? David B. Whitlock? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: If you or a loved one has faced cancer then the following assertion would be understandable: The most beautiful word in the English language is ‘benign’. This notion has been attributed to two well-known humorists Erma Bombeck and …
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John Dryden? Frederick Langbridge? Tryon Edwards? Nathanael Emmons? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A remarkably insightful statement about patterns of behavior is usually credited to the famous English poet John Dryden who died in 1700: We first make our habits, and then our habits make us. I have not been able to find a solid …
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Mark Twain? Merle Johnson? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: I would like to use the following adage during a presentation to a large group: It is wiser to find out than to suppose. I plan to credit Mark Twain, but I know that if I am wrong it will be very embarrassing because the entire …
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J. K. Rowling? Anaïs Nin? Plutarch? Otto Rank? Question for Quote Investigator: J. K. Rowling created the beloved fantasy universe of Harry Potter and the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She delivered a humorous and touching commencement address at Harvard University in 2008. While in college she studied the classics, and her address included …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Whatever We Achieve Inwardly Will Change Outer Reality”
Mark Twain? Abbie Hoffman? Roy F. Nichols? George McKinnon? Aardvark Magazine? Graffito? Question for Quote Investigator: The following has often been ascribed to the famous humorist Mark Twain and the 1960s-era political activist Abbie Hoffman: Sacred cows make the tastiest hamburger. Apologies for offensiveness. Would you please explore the provenance of this expression? Reply from …
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Hannah Arendt? Mark Victor Hansen? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Recently, I read the following upbeat message embracing egoism: Give yourself peace of mind. You deserve to be happy. You deserve delight. I was astonished when I saw it ascribed to the political theorist Hannah Arendt who wrote about the Nazi Adolf Eichmann and popularized …
Mohandas Gandhi? George Hyde Preston? Lynda Bird Johnson? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi who famously employed nonviolent strategies has implausibly been credited with the following piece of folk wisdom: If you’re going to be a bear, be a grizzly. Would you please explore this topic? Reply from Quote Investigator: …
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