The most fitting occupation for a civilized man is to do nothing.
—Théophile Gautier, c. 1835
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Quotes
At the bottom of enmity between strangers lies indifference.
—Søren Kierkegaard, 1850I reckon being ill as one of the great pleasures of life, provided one is not too ill and is not obliged to work till one is better.
—Samuel Butler, c. 1902A bull contents himself with one meadow, and one forest is enough for a thousand elephants; but the little body of a man devours more than all other living creatures.
—Seneca the Younger, c. 64It’s easy to be independent when you’ve got money. But to be independent when you haven’t got a thing—that’s the Lord’s test.
—Mahalia Jackson, 1966The twilight is the crack between the worlds.
—Carlos Castaneda, 1968The deed is everything, the glory naught.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1832I’m at an age when my back goes out more than I do.
—Phyllis Diller, 1981It’s the educated barbarian who is the worst: he knows what to destroy.
—Helen MacInnes, 1963Whenever a friend succeeds, a little something in me dies.
—Gore Vidal, 1973Civilization, as we know it, is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbor.
—Arnold Toynbee, 1948Madness need not be all breakdown. It may also be breakthrough.
—R.D. Laing, 1967I’m doomed to die, right? Why should I care if I go to Hades either with gout in my leg or a runner’s grace? Plenty of people will carry me there.
—Nicharchus, c. 90