Eric Hoffer ( 10 of 253 )
The aspiration toward freedom is the most essentially human of all human manifestations.
The aspiration toward freedom is the most essentially human of all human manifestations.
The hatred and cruelty which have their source in selfishness are ineffectual things compared with the venom and ruthlessness born read more
The hatred and cruelty which have their source in selfishness are ineffectual things compared with the venom and ruthlessness born of selflessness.
The only index by which to judge a government or a way of life is by the quality of the read more
The only index by which to judge a government or a way of life is by the quality of the people it acts upon. No matter how noble the objectives of a government, if it blurs decency and kindness, cheapens human life, and breeds ill will and suspicion- it is an evil government.
There is always a chance that he who sets himself up as his brother's keeper will end up by being read more
There is always a chance that he who sets himself up as his brother's keeper will end up by being his jail-keeper.
There is perhaps no better way of measuring the natural endowment of a soul than by its ability to transmute read more
There is perhaps no better way of measuring the natural endowment of a soul than by its ability to transmute dissatisfaction into a creative impulse. The genuine artist is as much a dissatisfied person as the revolutionary, yet how diametrically opposed are the products each distills from his dissatisfaction.
There is apparently no surer way of turning a thing into its opposite than by exaggerating it.
There is apparently no surer way of turning a thing into its opposite than by exaggerating it.
Fear comes from uncertainty. When we are absolutely certain, whether of our worth or our worthlessness, we are almost impervious read more
Fear comes from uncertainty. When we are absolutely certain, whether of our worth or our worthlessness, we are almost impervious to fear. Thus a feeling of utter worthlessness can be a source of courage.
To most of us nothing is so invisible as an unpleasant truth. Though it is held before our eyes, pushed read more
To most of us nothing is so invisible as an unpleasant truth. Though it is held before our eyes, pushed under our noses, rammed down our throats- we know it not.
We all have private ails. The troublemakers are they who need public cures for their private ails.
We all have private ails. The troublemakers are they who need public cures for their private ails.
The devil personifies not the nature that is around us but the nature that is within us- the infinitely ferocious read more
The devil personifies not the nature that is around us but the nature that is within us- the infinitely ferocious and cunning prehuman creature that is still within us, sealed in the subconscious cellars of the psyche.
