Tracing Quotations
William Shakespeare? William Arthur Ward? Rex Beach? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: A miscellaneous collection of lines offering advice has implausibly been attributed to the acclaimed English playwright William Shakespeare. Here are three of the lines: Before you speak, listen.Before you write, think.Before you spend, earn. The Shakespeare ascription is clearly dubious. The lines above …
Continue reading “Quote Origin: Before You Speak, Listen. Before You Write, Think”
Winston Churchill? William Arthur Ward? Googey Bince? Carl Hermann Voss? George W. Norris? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: It takes courage to stand up and speak, but it also takes courage to sit down and listen. This notion has been attributed to U.K statesman Winston Churchill, but I have never seen a solid citation, and …
Robert Louis Stevenson? William Arthur Ward? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: An eloquent agricultural metaphor occurs within an astute proverb about the value of preparation and investment: Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds you plant. The prominent Scottish novelist Robert Louis Stevenson has received credit for this saying, …