Knowledge itself is power.
—Francis Bacon, 1597Quotes
The mind that is not baffled is not employed.
—Wendell Berry, 1983The more corrupt the republic, the more numerous the laws.
—Tacitus, c. 117See one promontory (said Socrates of old), one mountain, one sea, one river, and see all.
—Robert Burton, c. 1620Fear has a smell, as love does.
—Margaret Atwood, 1972I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast, for I intend to go in harm’s way.
—John Paul Jones, 1778We and the dead ride quick at night.
—Gottfried August Bürger, 1773To live on a day-to-day basis is insufficient for human beings; we need to transcend, transport, escape; we need meaning, understanding, and explanation.
—Oliver Sacks, 2012Take back your golden fiddles, and we’ll beat to open sea.
—Rudyard Kipling, 1892Flesh was the reason why oil painting was invented.
—Willem de Kooning, 1949To lose confidence in one’s body is to lose confidence in oneself.
—Simone de Beauvoir, 1949Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.
—George Bernard Shaw, 1903Everyone who is sick is someone else’s patient zero.
—Leslie Jamison, 2020