Two Most Important Days in Your Life: The Day You Were Born and the Day You Discover Why

Mark Twain? Ernest T. Campbell? Anita Canfield? William Barclay? William McCartney? Tim Elmore? David Wood? Dave Martin? Helen Burns? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: The number of fake Mark Twain quotations grows significantly every year. I fear that a civilization of the distant future will credit Twain with authorship of every extant text. Here are two versions of a saying that has improbably been attributed to the man from Hannibal, Missouri:

1) The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.

2) There are two great days in a person’s life—the day we are born and the day we discover why.

Would you please help?

Quote Investigator: There is no substantive support linking Mark Twain to the statement.

The earliest strong match located by QI appeared in a 1970 pamphlet published by “The Riverside Church” of New York City. Minister Ernest T. Campbell delivered a sermon on January 25, 1970 that was recorded in the pamphlet. Campbell prefaced the saying with the locution “it has been said”. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]Pamphlet, Sermons from Riverside, Date of Sermon: January 25, 1970, Title of Sermon: “Give Ye Them to Eat”: Luke 9:10-17, Author of Sermon: Dr. Ernest T. Campbell, Quote Page 8, The … Continue reading

Our times call not for diction but for action. It has been said that the two most important days of a man’s life are the day on which he was born and the day on which he discovers why he was born. This is why we were born: To love the Lord our God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength, and our neighbor as ourselves.

Based on current evidence the provenance is anonymous. This article presents a snapshot of what QI has found, and subsequent researchers may discover more information.

Continue reading “Two Most Important Days in Your Life: The Day You Were Born and the Day You Discover Why”

References

References
↑1 Pamphlet, Sermons from Riverside, Date of Sermon: January 25, 1970, Title of Sermon: “Give Ye Them to Eat”: Luke 9:10-17, Author of Sermon: Dr. Ernest T. Campbell, Quote Page 8, The Publications Office, The Riverside Church, 490 Riverside Drive, New York, N.Y., Call number: Ernest T. Campbell Manuscript Collection Box 2, No. 3, Book contributor: Princeton Theological Seminary Library. (Internet Archive at archive.org) link

I Have Forgotten the Books I Have Read and the Dinners I Have Eaten, But They Both Helped Make Me

Ralph Waldo Emerson? G. B. Emerson? Charles Gordon Ames? Anonymous?

Dear Quote Investigator: The well-known lecturer and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson has been credited with a provocative remark about reading and memory:

I cannot remember the books I’ve read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.

I have not found a convincing citation for Emerson. Are these really his words?

Quote Investigator: QI has not yet found convincing evidence that Ralph Waldo Emerson spoke or wrote this statement. He died in 1882, and the earliest strong match located by QI appeared in “The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine” issue of June 1896 within an article about a Harvard Divinity graduate and prominent Unitarian clergyman named William Henry Furness who had died earlier in the year. The piece reviewed the life and accomplishments of Furness who was born in 1802 and attended Harvard in the early 1820s. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1896 June, The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine, Volume 4, Number 16, William Henry Furness by Charles Gordon Ames, (Profile of Harvard graduate William Henry Furness who died January 30, 1896), … Continue reading

Whatever impressions were made on the student’s mind by the courses of instruction, hardly a trace of them appears in his later authorship. Yet this may only imply thorough assimilation; for he can never be classed among those who have gone forth from classic halls to afflict mankind with the bad breath of ill-digested scholarship. “I have forgotten the books I have read,” said Emerson; “and so I have the dinners I have eaten; but they both helped make me.”

The paragraph preceding the passage above mentioned that G. B. Emerson was a tutor at Harvard while Furness was a student. Hence, it was conceivable that the ambiguous term “Emerson” referred G. B. Emerson instead of the better known Ralph Waldo Emerson (R. W. E.). On the other hand, the author of the article, Charles Gordon Ames, used “Emerson” to refer to R. W. E. in a later section. In addition, a quotation from R. W. E. would fit because Furness and he maintained a lifelong friendship that extended back to their days at Boston Latin School.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “I Have Forgotten the Books I Have Read and the Dinners I Have Eaten, But They Both Helped Make Me”

References

References
↑1 1896 June, The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine, Volume 4, Number 16, William Henry Furness by Charles Gordon Ames, (Profile of Harvard graduate William Henry Furness who died January 30, 1896), Start Page 545, Quote Page 546, Published by The Harvard Graduates’ Magazine Association, Boston, Massachusetts. (Google Books Full View) link

I Would Rather Die of Passion than of Boredom

Vincent van Gogh? Émile Zola? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: The famous Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh has been credited with the following fervent statement:

I would rather die of passion than of boredom.

Surprisingly, this remark has also been ascribed to the prominent French novelist Émile Zola. Would you please elucidate this topic?

Quote Investigator: In 1883 Émile Zola wrote a novel that contained an instance of this saying in French. In October 1884 Vincent van Gogh wrote a letter to his brother Theo that included the quotation as part of a larger excerpt from Zola’s novel. Thus, both well-known figures employed the saying, but Zola was the originator.

In 1833 Émile Zola released “Au Bonheur des Dames” which has been given several different English titles: “The Ladies’ Paradise”, “The Ladies’ Delight”, and “The Shop Girls of Paris”. The book was part of an important and popular series of twenty novels called: Les Rougon-Macquart. The saying under examination was spoken by a character named Octave Mouret while he was conversing with a character named Paul Vallagnosc. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1833, Au Bonheur des Dames by Émile Zola, Series: Les Rougon-Macquart, (Reprint of Charpentier edition from 1833 released by Hachette, Paris in 1980), Published by G. Charpentier, Paris. (Google … Continue reading

Agir, créer, se battre contre les faits, les vaincre ou être vaincu par eux, toute la joie et toute la santé humaines sont là!

— Simple façon de s’étourdir, murmura l’autre.

— Eh bien! j’aime mieux m’étourdir… Crever pour crever, je préfère crever de passion que de crever d’ennui!

Ils rirent tous les deux, cela leur rappelait leurs vieilles discussions du collège.

In 1883 a translation of Zola’s novel by Frank Belmont was published under the title “The Ladies’ Paradise”. The passage above was rendered as follows:[2] 1883, The Ladies’ Paradise by Émile Zola (Émile Édouard C.A. Zola), Volume 3 of 3, Translated by Frank Belmont, Quote Page 35, Tinsley Brothers, London. (Google Books Full View) link

“To act, to create, to struggle against facts, to overcome them or be overthrown by them, all health, all human joy consists in that!”

“Simple method of diverting one’s self.”

“Well, I prefer diverting myself. Death against death, I would rather die of passion than of ennui!” They both laughed, this reminded them of their old discussions at college.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “I Would Rather Die of Passion than of Boredom”

References

References
↑1 1833, Au Bonheur des Dames by Émile Zola, Series: Les Rougon-Macquart, (Reprint of Charpentier edition from 1833 released by Hachette, Paris in 1980), Published by G. Charpentier, Paris. (Google Books Full View) link
↑2 1883, The Ladies’ Paradise by Émile Zola (Émile Édouard C.A. Zola), Volume 3 of 3, Translated by Frank Belmont, Quote Page 35, Tinsley Brothers, London. (Google Books Full View) link

A Letter Is In Fact the Only Device for Combining Solitude and Good Company

Lord Byron? Jacques Barzun? Robert Halsband? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: On a Pinterest pin-board I saw a picture of the famous British poet Lord Byron accompanying the following quotation:

Letter writing is the only device for combining solitude with good company.

I would like to use this expression in an article, but I have not been able to find a good citation. Would you please help?

Quote Investigator: QI has found no substantive evidence that Lord Byron (George Gordon Byron) crafted the statement above. The ascription was probably based on a mistake that will be explicated further below.

The earliest strong match located by QI appeared in 1953 in the introduction to “The Selected Letters of Lord Byron” which was edited and introduced by the prominent historian Jacques Barzun. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1953, The Selected Letters of Lord Byron by George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron), Edited by Jacques Barzun, Series: Great Letters Series, Introduction: Byron and the Byronic in History by Jacques Barzun, … Continue reading

It is obvious that letter writing often gave Byron the opportunity to be outrageous and gay in a degree that no civilized society allows. A letter is in fact the only device for combining solitude and good company. And for some obscure reason, letters are also the proper medium for extravaganza.

The original wording of the expression differed slightly from the popular modern versions. Barzun was presenting his viewpoint in this passage, and he was not using the words of Byron.

In October 1953 “The Saturday Review” published an examination of “The Selected Letters of Lord Byron” by the scholar Robert Halsband. He praised the introduction by Barzun and reprinted the statement under investigation. Unfortunately, the context was ambiguous, and QI believes that some readers incorrectly attributed the remark by Barzun to Byron:[2]1953 October 3, The Saturday Review, Writers Notes: A Poet’s Letters by Robert Halsband, (Review of The Selected Letters of Lord Byron edited by Jacques Barzun), Start Page 36, Quote Page 52, … Continue reading

The introduction, even if read after the letters (which is a test), stands out for its clarity and wit. Especially judicious is his distinction between the man Byron and the time-spirit Byronism; as a biographer and as a cultural historian he does justice to both. His epigrammatic style is no disadvantage: “A letter is in fact the only device for combining solitude and good company.”

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “A Letter Is In Fact the Only Device for Combining Solitude and Good Company”

References

References
↑1 1953, The Selected Letters of Lord Byron by George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron), Edited by Jacques Barzun, Series: Great Letters Series, Introduction: Byron and the Byronic in History by Jacques Barzun, Start Page vii, Quote Page xxxvii and xxxviii, Farrar, Straus and Young, New York (Verified on paper)
↑2 1953 October 3, The Saturday Review, Writers Notes: A Poet’s Letters by Robert Halsband, (Review of The Selected Letters of Lord Byron edited by Jacques Barzun), Start Page 36, Quote Page 52, Saturday Review Associates, New York. (Unz)

Do Not Let Spacious Plans for a New World Divert Your Energies from Saving What Is Left of the Old

Winston Churchill? Jack Fishman? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: Here is a mystifying question for you. Winston Churchill has been credited with crafting two nearly identical quotations beginning as follows:

1) Do not let specious plans …
2) Do not let spacious plans …

The two expressions differed by a single word: specious/spacious. Did Churchill utter or write either of these quotations?

Quote Investigator: There is evidence that Churchill wrote both of these quotations. In 1950 he released a book titled “The Grand Alliance” which was part of his multi-volume history of World War II. He included an appendix reprinting “Prime Minister’s Personal Minutes and Telegrams”. After he had examined the damage to buildings caused by bombing he sent a message in June 1941 to the Minister for Works and Buildings, Churchill emphasized the goal of repairing structures that could be made habitable. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1950, The Second World War: The Grand Alliance by Winston S. Churchill, Appendix C, Book One: Prime Minister’s Personal Minutes and Telegrams: January to June 1941, Message from Prime Minister … Continue reading

I continue to see great numbers of houses where the walls and roofs are all right, but the windows have not been repaired, and which are consequently uninhabitable. At present I regard this as your Number 1 war task. Do not let spacious plans for a new world divert your energies from saving what is left of the old.

In 1974 a posthumous collection of writings ascribed to Winston Churchill was published under the title “If I Lived My Life Again”. The compiler and editor was Jack Fishman who stated that his sources included magazines, newspapers, speeches, unpublished texts, and personal discussions. Unfortunately, Fishman did not provide precise notes for the provenance of chapters in the book, and some pieces were mosaics from different sources. Chapter 15 was titled “Wise Heads and Young Shoulders” and contained the following:[2]1974, If I Lived My Life Again Winston S. Churchill, Compiled and edited by Jack Fishman, Chapter 15: Wise Heads and Young Shoulders, Start Page 179, Quote Page 183, Publisher by W. H. Allen, London. … Continue reading

To youth I say – It must be world anarchy or world order. Do not let specious plans for a new world divert your energies from saving what is left of the old.

The oldest habit in the world for resisting change is to complain that unless the remedy to the disease can be universally applied it should not be applied at all. But you must begin somewhere.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Do Not Let Spacious Plans for a New World Divert Your Energies from Saving What Is Left of the Old”

References

References
↑1 1950, The Second World War: The Grand Alliance by Winston S. Churchill, Appendix C, Book One: Prime Minister’s Personal Minutes and Telegrams: January to June 1941, Message from Prime Minister to Minister for Works and Buildings (also Minister of Health), Date: January 6, 1941, Quote Page 722 and 723, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. (Verified on paper)
↑2 1974, If I Lived My Life Again Winston S. Churchill, Compiled and edited by Jack Fishman, Chapter 15: Wise Heads and Young Shoulders, Start Page 179, Quote Page 183, Publisher by W. H. Allen, London. (Verified on paper)

If You’ve Told a Child a Thousand Times, and the Child Still Has Not Learned, Then It Is Not the Child Who Is the Slow Learner

Walter Barbee? Walter Barbie? Walter Barbe? Robert Alcorn? Nancy Reese?

Dear Quote Investigator: A cogent adage aimed at teachers begins with the following phrase:

If you’ve told a child a thousand times and he still does not understand…

The full expression concludes with a reversal of the traditional supposition and indicates that the teacher is the slow learner instead of the student. Do you know who should be credited with this saying?

Quote Investigator: The 1978 book “Inviting School Success: A Self-Concept Approach to Teaching and Learning” by William Watson Purkey contained the following passage. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1978, Inviting School Success: A Self-Concept Approach to Teaching and Learning by William Watson Purkey (University of North Carolina at Greensboro), Chapter 4: Skills of the Invitational Teacher, … Continue reading

As Walter Barbe commented in an in-service workshop address (Marshall University, 1977): “If you’ve told a child a thousand times, and the child still has not learned, then it is not the child who is the slow learner.” The role of the teacher is to extend consistently the invitations most likely to result in students feeling better about themselves and working to learn more in school.

In 1986 “The Orlando Sentinel” newspaper of Orlando, Florida stated that Walter Barbe was the editor-in-chief of “Highlights for Children” magazine, and the paper recounted some of his comments made before a group of teachers in Seminole County, Florida:[2]1986 February 9, The Orlando Sentinel, Section: Seminole Sentinel, Article: Expert on Learning: Kids Absorb Knowledge in Many Ways, Byline: Elaine Bennett (The Sentinel Staff), Quote Page 1, Orlando, … Continue reading

“If a child does not grasp a lesson when it is first presented, do not just repeat the lesson and increase the volume,” he said. “Try another way, another modality.”

“After all,” Barbe said, “if you have to tell a child something a thousand times, perhaps it is not the child who is the slow learner.”

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “If You’ve Told a Child a Thousand Times, and the Child Still Has Not Learned, Then It Is Not the Child Who Is the Slow Learner”

References

References
↑1 1978, Inviting School Success: A Self-Concept Approach to Teaching and Learning by William Watson Purkey (University of North Carolina at Greensboro), Chapter 4: Skills of the Invitational Teacher, Quote Page 48, Wadsworth Publishing Company, Belmont, California. (Verified on paper)
↑2 1986 February 9, The Orlando Sentinel, Section: Seminole Sentinel, Article: Expert on Learning: Kids Absorb Knowledge in Many Ways, Byline: Elaine Bennett (The Sentinel Staff), Quote Page 1, Orlando, Florida. (NewsBank Access World News)

Chains Do Not Hold a Marriage Together. It Is Thread, Hundreds of Tiny Threads which Sew People Together Through the Years

Simone Signoret? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: I am trying to find a citation for a statement attributed to the wonderful French movie actress Simone Signoret. Here is a paraphrase from my memory: marriages are not held together by chains; they are held together by hundreds of threads. Are you familiar with this saying? Would you please help me to find its origin?

Quote Investigator: In 1978 Simone Signoret was interviewed by David Lewin in the pages of the UK newspaper the “Daily Mail”. She was asked about her husband, the actor Yves Montand, who had co-starred with the Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe in “Let’s Make Love” back in 1960. Gossip mongers suggested that Montand and Monroe may have taken the title of the movie literally, and Lewin inquired about what held Signoret’s marriage together. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1] 1978 July 4, Daily Mail, Simone Signoret Talking to David Lewin, Quote Page 7, Column 3, United Kingdom. (Daily Mail Archive: Gale NewsVault)

‘Chains do not hold a marriage together,’ she replied. ‘It is thread, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years. That is what makes a marriage last—more than passion or even sex.’
‘But those threads should never become chains.’

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Chains Do Not Hold a Marriage Together. It Is Thread, Hundreds of Tiny Threads which Sew People Together Through the Years”

References

References
↑1 1978 July 4, Daily Mail, Simone Signoret Talking to David Lewin, Quote Page 7, Column 3, United Kingdom. (Daily Mail Archive: Gale NewsVault)

First Forget Inspiration. Habit Is More Dependable. Habit Will Sustain You Whether You’re Inspired or Not

Octavia Butler? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: Recently, a publisher in Silicon Valley tweeted an illustration of the prominent science fiction author Octavia Butler together with a quotation that offered intriguing advice about writing. The quote began:

First forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable.

When were these words written or said by Butler?

Quote Investigator: Octavia Butler penned an essay addressed to aspiring writers titled “Furor Scribendi” that appeared in the ninth anthology of the series “L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future”. The piece was reprinted in the 1995 collection “Bloodchild: And Other Stories”. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1] 1995, Bloodchild: And Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler, Furor Scribendi, Start Page 137, Quote Page 141, Four Walls Eight Windows, New York. (Verified with scans)

First forget inspiration. Habit is more dependable. Habit will sustain you whether you’re inspired or not. Habit will help you finish and polish your stories. Inspiration won’t. Habit is persistence in practice.

Butler also presented a refreshingly provocative viewpoint about talent:

Forget talent. If you have it, fine. Use it. If you don’t have it, it doesn’t matter. As habit is more dependable than inspiration, continued learning is more dependable than talent.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “First Forget Inspiration. Habit Is More Dependable. Habit Will Sustain You Whether You’re Inspired or Not”

References

References
↑1 1995, Bloodchild: And Other Stories by Octavia E. Butler, Furor Scribendi, Start Page 137, Quote Page 141, Four Walls Eight Windows, New York. (Verified with scans)

We Are an Impossibility in an Impossible Universe

Ray Bradbury? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: On Facebook I saw the following quotation displayed on a star-filled picture:

We are an impossibility in an impossible universe

The words were attributed to the prominent science fiction author Ray Bradbury, but I haven’t been able to find a citation. Would you please help?

Quote Investigator: In January 1975 “The Oregonian” newspaper of Portland, Oregon published a column that reviewed television and radio programs. The public television station KOAP-TV had recently broadcast a program called “Assignment America” hosted by the well-known poet Maya Angelou with Ray Bradbury as guest. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1] 1975 January 31, Oregonian, Behind the mike: Rousing beginning made by ‘Archer’ by Francis Murphy (The Oregonian staff), Quote Page B7, Column 1, Portland, Oregon. (GenealogyBank)

Bradbury told her, “We are on the moon today because of one man and only one man and that’s Edgar Rice Burroughs. His John Carter, ‘Warlord of Mars,’ romanced a whole generation of boys into going out and building the equipment to go to the moon.” Bradbury was fittingly interviewed in Hollywood’s Magic Castle. “We’re an impossibility in an impossible universe,” he said. “There’s really no split between science and religion. When facts stop, faith has to take over.”

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “We Are an Impossibility in an Impossible Universe”

References

References
↑1 1975 January 31, Oregonian, Behind the mike: Rousing beginning made by ‘Archer’ by Francis Murphy (The Oregonian staff), Quote Page B7, Column 1, Portland, Oregon. (GenealogyBank)

Many Persons Have a Wrong Idea of What Constitutes True Happiness. It Is Not Attained Through Self-Gratification but Through Fidelity to a Worthy Purpose

Helen Keller? Apocryphal?

Dear Quote Investigator: A wise statement about true happiness and its connection to the pursuit of a worthwhile objective has been attributed to the blind social activist Helen Keller. Are you familiar with this saying and is the ascription accurate?

Quote Investigator: Hellen Keller maintained a journal during the years 1936 and 1937 which was published in 1938. The entry dated December 10, 1936 contained the following passage about true happiness. Boldface has been added to excerpts:[1]1938, Helen Keller’s Journal 1936–1937 by Helen Keller, (Journal Date: December 10, 1936; Journal Location: The Manse, Bothwell), Quote Page 57 and 58, Doubleday, Doran & Company Inc., … Continue reading[2]1938, Helen Keller’s Journal 1936–1937 by Helen Keller, (Journal Date: December 10, 1936; Journal Location: The Manse, Bothwell), Quote Page 64, Publisher Michael Joseph Ltd., London. … Continue reading

Certainly I believe that God gave us life for happiness, not misery. Humanity, I am sure, will never be made lazy or indifferent by an excess of happiness. The order of nature will always necessitate pain, failure, separation, death; and these will probably become more menacing as the complexities and dangerous experiments of a vast world civilization increase. The delicate task will remain ours to ensure God’s gift—joy—to His children. Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. Happiness should be a means of accomplishment, like health, not an end in itself.

Here are additional selected citations in chronological order.

Continue reading “Many Persons Have a Wrong Idea of What Constitutes True Happiness. It Is Not Attained Through Self-Gratification but Through Fidelity to a Worthy Purpose”

References

References
↑1 1938, Helen Keller’s Journal 1936–1937 by Helen Keller, (Journal Date: December 10, 1936; Journal Location: The Manse, Bothwell), Quote Page 57 and 58, Doubleday, Doran & Company Inc., Garden City, New York. (Verified with scans via archive.org) link
↑2 1938, Helen Keller’s Journal 1936–1937 by Helen Keller, (Journal Date: December 10, 1936; Journal Location: The Manse, Bothwell), Quote Page 64, Publisher Michael Joseph Ltd., London. (Verified with scans via archive.org) link