Death renders all equal.
—Claudian, c. 395
Archive
Quotes
A world is sooner destroyed than made.
—Thomas Burnet, 1684Art lives from constraints and dies from freedom.
—Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1480The charm, one might say the genius, of memory is that it is choosy, chancy, and temperamental: it rejects the edifying cathedral and indelibly photographs the small boy outside, chawing a hunk of melon in the dust.
—Elizabeth Bowen, 1955The U.S. presidency is a Tudor monarchy plus telephones.
—Anthony Burgess, 1972Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose.
—Zora Neale Hurston, 1942Sanity is madness put to good uses; waking life is a dream controlled.
—George Santayana, 1920Music is a beautiful opiate, if you don’t take it too seriously.
—Henry Miller, 1945Water is the first principle of everything.
—Thales of Miletus, c. 600 BCThe only competition worthy a wise man is with himself.
—Anna Jameson, 1846The root of the kingdom is in the State. The root of the State is in the family. The root of the family is in the person of its Head.
—Mencius, c. 270 BCAvoid the law—the first loss is generally the least.
—Hannah Farnham Sawyer Lee, 1844People who’ve drunk neat wine don’t care a damn.
—Hipponax, c. 550 BC