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The great secret of power is never to will to do more than you can accomplish.

Henrik Ibsen

The man whom God wills to slay in the struggle of life – he first individualizes.
HENRIK IBSEN

God Individual Life Man Struggle
A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.
HENRIK IBSEN

Community Myself Preparation
Each bird must sing with his own throat.
HENRIK IBSEN

Ability Bird Independent Sing Throat
If I cannot be myself in what I write, then the whole is nothing but lies and humbug.
HENRIK IBSEN

Lying Myself Writing
It was then that I began to look into the seams of your doctrine. I wanted only to pick at a single knot; but when I had got that undone, the whole thing raveled out. And then I understood that it was all machine-sewn.
HENRIK IBSEN

Beginning Pick Understand Yourself
The devil is compromise.
HENRIK IBSEN

Compromise Devil One Liner
It is not by spectacular achievements that man can be transformed, but by will.
HENRIK IBSEN

Achievement Man Transformation Willing
What’s a man’s first duty? The answer is brief: To be himself.
HENRIK IBSEN

Brief Himself Man Responsibility
Happiness is above all things the calm, glad certainty of innocence.
HENRIK IBSEN

Calm Certain Happiness Innocent
Marriage! Nothing else demands so much of a man.
HENRIK IBSEN

Demand Man Marriage
It is inexcusable for scientists to torture animals; let them make their experiments on journalists and politicians.
HENRIK IBSEN

Animal Excuse Experiment Journal Politician Science
Almost everyone who has gone to the bad early in life has had a deceitful mother.
HENRIK IBSEN

Bad Early Family Hard Time Mom
The costliness of keeping friends does not lie in what one does for them, but in what one, out of consideration for them, refrains from doing.
HENRIK IBSEN

Friendship Lying Oneself
I propose to raise a revolution against the lie that the majority has the monopoly of the truth.
HENRIK IBSEN

Lying Myself Raise Revolution Truth
Different people have different duties assigned them by Nature; Nature has given one the power or the desire to do this, the other that. Each bird must sing with his own throat.
HENRIK IBSEN

Ability Different Independent Oneself People Responsibility Sing
Everything that I have written is closely related to something that I have lived through.
HENRIK IBSEN

Close Live Myself Relate Writing
Look into any man’s heart you please, and you will always find, in every one, at least one black spot which he has to keep concealed.
HENRIK IBSEN

Finding Heart Himself Man Please
I’m afraid for all those who’ll have the bread snatched from their mouths by these machines. What business has science and capitalism got, bringing all these new inventions into the works, before society has produced a generation educated up to using them!
HENRIK IBSEN

Afraid Capital Education Invention Machine Myself Science
Whether I pound or am being pounded, all the same there will be moaning!
HENRIK IBSEN

Hustle Moaning Myself
Poetry is to hold judgment on your soul.
HENRIK IBSEN

Hold Judgement Poetry Soul Yourself
The sea possesses a power over one’s moods that has the effect of a will. The sea can hypnotize. Nature in general can do so.
HENRIK IBSEN

General Nature Possession Power Sea
Oh, yes–you can shout me down, I know! But you cannot answer me. The majority has might on its side–unfortunately; but right it has not.
HENRIK IBSEN

Known Myself Right Yourself
To live is to war with trolls.
HENRIK IBSEN

Live Troll War
Don’t use that foreign word: ideals. We have the excellent native word: lies.
HENRIK IBSEN

Excellence Foreign Ideal Lying Word
There is something so indescribably sweet and satisfying in the knowledge that a husband or wife has forgiven the other freely, and from the heart.
HENRIK IBSEN

Freedom Heart Knowledge Satisfaction Sweet
Happiness is worth a daring deed; we are both free if we but will it, and then the game is won.
HENRIK IBSEN

Action Dare Game Happiness Winning
Home life ceases to be free and beautiful as soon as it is founded on borrowing and debt.
HENRIK IBSEN

Borrow Debt Finding Home Life

The great secret of power is never to will to do more than you can accomplish.

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The great secret of power is never to will to do more than you can accomplish.

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