Tracing Quotations
Elbert Hubbard? Dale Carnegie? Julius Rosenwald? Robert M. Hutchins? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: In the early 1900s the slang expression “handed a lemon” emerged. It referred to experiencing a setback or failure. The term “lemon” meant something which was bad, undesirable, or sub-standard. A humorous expression evolved as a counterpoint. Here are two versions: …
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Ralph Waldo Emerson? Elbert Hubbard? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: New forms of celebrity have been created in recent years. TikTok and YouTube have produced influencers. Yet, popularity has become remarkably transient. I am reminded of the following harsh comment: (1) Fame is proof that the people are gullible.(2) Fame is proof that people are …
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Elbert Hubbard? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Anxiety about making a mistake can cause inaction and paralysis. Moving forward inevitably leads to some errors and imperfections. Yet it is necessary to make choices, take action, and fix the accompanying mistakes. Here is a pertinent adage: The greatest mistake is continually fearing you will make one. …
Kin Hubbard? Will Rogers? Elbert Hubbard? Abe Martin? Max Eastman? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Proselytizers for get-rich-quick schemes are ubiquitous online. A popular joke describes a comically easy way to obtain illusory wealth. Here are two versions: (1) To get rich you should convert your money to bills. Next, you should fold the bills, …
Elbert Hubbard? Victor Grayson? P. G. Wodehouse? Benjamin Jowett? E. A. Isaacs? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Explaining one’s beliefs and motivations is typically worthwhile, but sometimes it seems to be futile. Here are two versions of a germane remark: (1) Never explain. Your friends don’t require it, and your enemies won’t believe you, anyway. …
Benjamin Jowett? Nellie McClung? Elbert Hubbard? Lionel Arthur Tollemache? James Kay-Shuttleworth? Ralph Lingen? George Otto Trevelyan? Wilbur F. Storey? Frederic William Farrar? Benjamin Disraeli? John Arbuthnot Fisher? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Accomplishing a difficult task when facing strong opposition takes a forceful personality. Here are three pertinent guidelines for persevering: (1) Never retract. Never …
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Elbert Hubbard? Robert Burns Wilson? Dale Carnegie? Kin Hubbard? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A short motivational piece of about 130 words begins with the following sentence: “Genius is really only the power of making continuous efforts.” The piece has been attributed to aphorist Elbert Hubbard and poet Robert Burns Wilson. Would you please explore this …
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Elbert Hubbard? Kin Hubbard? Ralph Waldo Emerson? Robert Burns Wilson? Henry Austin? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Success is often achieved via persistence. Here is a popular elaboration of this notion: There is no defeat except from within. There is really no insurmountable barrier, save your own inherent weakness of purpose. This remark has been attributed …
Robert Owen? Elbert Hubbard? Orlando K. Fitzsimmons? Sidney Abram Weltmer? O. A. Hawkins? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: An optimistic rhyming maxim highlights the enormous potential for positive accomplishments. Here are three versions: (1) What humanity can conceive, humanity can achieve. (2) What man can conceive, man can achieve (3) Man can achieve what man can …
Elbert Hubbard? Bernard Le Bovier de Fontenelle? William J. Crawford? Walt Kelly? Pogo? Pierre Daninos? Alphonse Allais? Julien Green? Dear Quote Investigator: There is a trenchant family of fatalistic sayings concerning the solemnity of life. Here are four examples: Don’t take life too seriously; you’ll never get out of it alive. You mustn’t take life …
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