Heraclitus? John DiFusco? Tracers? Paul Whitesell? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus has received credit for the following statement which is popular in the military domain: Out of every one-hundred men, ten shouldn’t even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky …
Author Archives: quoteresearch
Quote Origin: Fauvism Is a Sort of Exasperated Form of Impressionism
Guillaume Apollinaire? John Golding? Ian Crofton? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Les fauves means the wild beasts in French, and Fauvism was a style of painting that developed near the start of the 20th century. Apparently, a contemporary critic stated the following: Fauvism is a sort of exasperated form of Impressionism. This remark has been …
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Quote Origin: Satire Is Meant To Ridicule Power
Terry Pratchett? Vrabia? J. M. Frey? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Satire has been used to attack a wide variety of targets. Cruel or mean-spirited mockery is often controversial. Here is a pertinent quotation: Satire is meant to ridicule power. If you are laughing at people who are hurting, it’s not satire, it’s bullying. These …
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Quote Origin: There Are Three Things a Person Can Make Out of Almost Nothing — a Salad, a Hat, and a Quarrel
Mark Twain? Coco Chanel? John Barrymore? Marlene Dietrich? Jackie Kannon? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A creative person can fashion a hat out of almost any scrap of fabric. An imaginative person can combine a wide variety of ingredients to create a salad. An irascible person can generate a quarrel from a mild disagreement. These …
Headline Origin: Foot Heads Arms Body
Roger Bacon? Mike Ramsden? David C. Allan? Alex Berlyne? Martyn Cornell? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: According to a popular journalistic legend a newspaper in London once published the following difficult to decipher headline: Foot Heads Arms Body This headline was purportedly about British politician Michael Foot who had become the leader of an organization …
Quote Origin: You Never Change Anything By Fighting It; You Change Things By Making Them Obsolete Through Superior Technology
Buckminster Fuller? Mike Vance? Diane Deacon? Daniel Quinn? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Inventor and futurist R. Buckminster Fuller once spoke about the best way to accomplish positive changes. He said that one rarely changes something by fighting it directly. Instead, one should build a new system or model that makes the existing model obsolete. …
Anecdote Origin: “You Have Come Late To the Office” “Oh! I’ll Make Up For It By Leaving Early”
Charles Lamb? Thomas Love Peacock? William Makepeace Thackeray? Frederick Saunders? Oscar Wilde? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A humorous anecdote depicts an absurdist interaction between a worker and a supervisor: Supervisor: “You have arrived late for work.”Worker: “Yes, but I will make up for it by leaving early.” This reply has been attributed to the …
Quote Origin: One of the Best Ways To Persuade Others Is With Your Ears — By Listening To Them
Dean Rusk? Jacob Morton Braude? Reader’s Digest? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: If you wish to influence or persuade a person you must attempt to determine their viewpoint. You must be attentive to their needs and desires. Here are two versions of a pertinent saying: (1) One of the best ways to persuade others is …
Quip Origin: In Ancient Times Cats Were Worshipped As Gods; They Have Not Forgotten This
Terry Pratchett? P. G. Wodehouse? Dave Ochs? Dusty Rainbolt? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Cats project an air of superiority and aloofness according to sharp observers. A humorous remark reflects this viewpoint: In ancient times, cats were worshipped as gods. They have never forgotten this. The best-selling English fantasy author Terry Pratchett has received credit …
Simile Origin: The Mind Is Like an Iceberg; It Floats With One-Seventh of Its Bulk Above Water
Sigmund Freud? G. Stanley Hall? Henry H. Goddard? Julia Turner? Percy Dearmer? Carlos María de Heredia? Woods Hutchinson? Question for Quote Investigator: The subconscious mind has an enormous influence on human behavior. A clever simile juxtaposes a mind and an iceberg. The conscious mind corresponds to the part of the iceberg above the waterline, and …