Tracing Quotations
Stephen King? Robert Bloch? Bennett Cerf? Gahan Wilson? Question for Quote Investigator: A famous horror writer employed a comically gruesome paraprosdokian when discussing temperament. There are many phrasings for this quip. Here is one: I have the heart of a child. I keep it in a jar on my desk. This joke has been attributed …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: I Have the Heart of a Small Boy”
Bruce Lee? Margaret of Valois? Sir John Fenwick? Isabel Burton? Richard Francis Burton? Arabic Apothegm? Asian Saying? Charles Haddon Spurgeon? Park Ludlow? Theron Brown? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The following four part saying is about knowledge and self-knowledge: He who knows not, and knows not he knows not, is a fool; shun him.He who …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: He Who Knows, and Knows Not He Knows, Is Asleep; Awaken Him”
H. G. Wells? Diane Ackerman? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: When the famous science fiction author and social critic H. G. Wells envisioned utopia he wished to see ubiquitous bicycle paths winding through forests and gardens. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: H. G. Wells serialized his alternate …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Cycle Tracks Will Abound In Utopia”
Rebecca West? George Bernard Shaw? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The prominent British author and literary critic Rebecca West once wrote about the necessity to be loyal to one’s own desires. Would you please help me to find a citation? Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1913 Rebecca West published in the journal “The New Freewoman” …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: It Is the Soul’s Duty To Be Loyal To Its Own Desires”
George Bernard Shaw? John Bowring? John Browning? John Bouring? Question for Quote Investigator: Some envision heaven filled with a joyous, loving, and interconnected group of people united on a higher spiritual plane. If one is a member of a happy family here on Earth then it is possible to obtain a glimpse of this future …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: A Happy Family Is But an Earlier Heaven”
Carl Sandburg? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Humanity takes arrogant pride in the knowledge it has accumulated over the centuries. Yet, it is a paltry amount when compared to the vast treasure troves that remain undiscovered in the uncharted regions of space and time. I roughly recall a saying on this theme that emphasized humility: …
Rosalind Franklin? Brenda Maddox? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: In the 21st century the insights gained via science have re-emerged as centrally important to the flourishing of our planet and humanity. Apparently, a researcher enthralled by work was told that she was placing too much emphasis on science. She replied: Science and everyday life cannot …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Science and Everyday Life Cannot and Should Not Be Separated”
Loren Eiseley? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: The motions of water are often mesmerizing, e.g., the rhythmic crashing of waves on a beach, the misty turbulence of a plunging waterfall, and the sparkling jet of a fountain. A science popularizer apparently once said: If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water. …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: If There Is Magic On This Planet, It Is Contained In Water”
Veronica Lake? Judy Klemesrud? Walter Clemons? Anonymous? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A pulchritudinous movie star of the golden age of Hollywood supposedly said: I wasn’t a sex symbol; I was a sex zombie. Is this an authentic quotation? If someone did deliver this line would you please tell me who it was? Reply from …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: I Wasn’t a Sex Symbol; I Was a Sex Zombie”
Albert Einstein? Werner Mitsch? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: It is difficult to conceive of an ordinary creature foolish enough to design and build a device that would dramatically increase the probability of its self-annihilation. The great scientist Albert Einstein supposedly made the following remark: Mankind invented the atomic bomb, yet a mouse would never …