Tracing Quotations
Mark Twain? Abraham Maslow? Abraham Kaplan? Silvan Tomkins? Kenneth Mark Colby? Lee Loevinger? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The tools that we are able to apply to problems alter our perceptions of the challenges we face and the solutions that are appropriate. A popular adage illustrates this idea with a compelling analogy. Here are three versions: …
Continue reading “If Your Only Tool Is a Hammer Then Every Problem Looks Like a Nail”
Charles Darwin? Leon C. Megginson? Clarence Darrow? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The following statement is often attributed to the famous scientist Charles Darwin, but I am skeptical: It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change. Shortened …
Vincent van Gogh? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Vincent van Gogh was the boldest and most innovative painter of the 19th-century in my opinion. Here are two versions of a poignant statement that has been attributed to him: There is nothing more truly artistic than to love people. There’s nothing more genuinely artistic than to love …
Continue reading “There’s Nothing More Genuinely Artistic Than to Love People”
Albert Einstein? Lincoln Barnett? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Albert Einstein’s astonishing theory of relativity is highly counter-intuitive. For example, the theory indicates that time can pass at different rates in different reference frames. This certainly challenges common sense. The following germane statement is attributed to Einstein: Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by …
W. H. Auden? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: The acclaimed poet W. H. Auden popularized one of the funniest definitions for an academic: A professor is one who talks in someone else’s sleep. Do you know whether Auden crafted this quip? Quote Investigator: There is substantive evidence that W. H. Auden did employ this joke …
Continue reading “A Professor Is One Who Talks in Someone Else’s Sleep”
Sophia Loren? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: I am trying to recall an observation made in the 1950s or 1960s by a great beauty. I do not remember the precise wording. The essence of the quotation was that her attractiveness was 50 percent actual and 50 percent projected by others. Would you please help me …
W. H. Auden? George Herbert Palmer? Young Boy? Thomas Robert Dewar? John Foster Hall? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Altruism is a cornerstone of many religions and philosophies. Here are two versions of a humorous comment on this topic: If we are here to help others, I often wonder what the others are here for. We …
Continue reading “If We Are Here to Help Others, I Often Wonder What the Others Are Here For”
Helen Keller? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: A website on education policy began a recent article with a statement attributed to Helen Keller: Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. No citation was given. Would you please examine this saying? Quote Investigator: There is good evidence that Helen Keller did speak …
Continue reading “Alone We Can Do So Little. Together We Can Do So Much”
Swedish Councilor? Benjamin Disraeli? Australian Alderman? Casey Motsisi? Dennis Skinner? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Recently on twitter I saw a joke about the limits placed on unparliamentary language in Britain. A photo depicted an unhappy contemporary politician in the House of Commons with a caption similar to the following: Politician: Half the members of the …
Continue reading “Half of the Town Councilors Are Not Fools”
Nathaniel Hawthorne? Henry David Thoreau? L.? Apocryphal? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: An ingenious and lovely simile about happiness is confusingly attributed to two prominent literary figures: Nathaniel Hawthorne and Henry David Thoreau. Here are two versions: Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but which, if you will sit …
Continue reading “Happiness Is A Butterfly, Which When Pursued, Seems Always Just Beyond Your Grasp”