To the untrue man, the whole universe is false- it is impalpable- it shrinks to nothing within his grasp. And he himself is in so far as he shows himself in a false light, becomes a shadow, or, indeed, ceases to exist.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNETo the untrue man, the whole universe is false- it is impalpable- it shrinks to nothing within his grasp. And he himself is in so far as he shows himself in a false light, becomes a shadow, or, indeed, ceases to exist.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNETo do nothing is the way to be nothing.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEIf mankind were all intellect, they would be continually changing, so that one age would be entirely unlike another. The great conservative is the heart, which remains the same in all ages; so that commonplaces of a thousand years’ standing are as effective as ever.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEWe go all wrong by too strenuous a resolution to go right.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEOur Creator would never have made such lovely days, and have given us the deep hearts to enjoy them, above and beyond all thought, unless we were meant to be immortal.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNELife is made up of marble and mud.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEAll brave men love; for he only is brave who has affections to fight for, whether in the daily battle of life, or in physical contests.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEHappiness is not found in things you possess, but in what you have the courage to release.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEEager souls, mystics and revolutionaries, may propose to refashion the world in accordance with their dreams; but evil remains, and so long as it lurks in the secret places of the heart, utopia is only the shadow of a dream.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEWe must not always talk in the market-place of what happens to us in the forest.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEMankind are earthen jugs with spirits in them.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEThe greatest obstacle to being heroic is the doubt whether one may going to prove one’s self a fool.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNENobody, I think, ought to read poetry, or look at pictures or statues, who cannot find a great deal more in them than the poet or artist has actually expressed. Their highest merit is suggestiveness.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEThis world owes all its forward impulses to people ill at ease.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNETrusting no man as his friend, he could not recognize his enemy when the latter actually appeared.
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNEWhat is the voice of song when the world lacks the ear of taste?
NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE