Henry David Thoreau

Find the best quotes, maxims and aphorisms of Henry David Thoreau

Biography : American essayist, poet and philosopher, best known for Walden (a record of his two‑year stay in the woods, during which he lived a simple life close to nature) and for his essay on civil disobedience.
Born: 1817 - Died: 1862
Period:
19th century
Place of birth: United States

United States

Henry David Thoreau - Quotes

Men are born to succeed, not to fail.
Henry David Thoreau /

Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.
Henry David Thoreau /

heaven

Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.
Henry David Thoreau /

It is best to avoid the beginnings of evil.
Henry David Thoreau /

The man who goes alone can start today but he who travels with another must wait till that other is ready.
Henry David Thoreau /

travel

All men are children, and of one family. The same tale sends them all to bed, and wakes them in the morning.
Henry David Thoreau /

Do not hire a man who does your work for money, but him who does it for love of it.
Henry David Thoreau /

If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours.
Henry David Thoreau /

We know but a few men, a great many coats and breeches.
Henry David Thoreau /

The Artist is he who detects and applies the law from observation of the works of Genius, whether of man or Nature. The Artisan is he who merely applies the rules which others have detected.
Henry David Thoreau /

Generally speaking, a howling wilderness does not howl: it is the imagination of the traveler that does the howling.
Henry David Thoreau /

In my afternoon walk I would fain forget all my morning occupations and my obligations to society.
Henry David Thoreau /

society

True friendship can afford true knowledge. It does not depend on darkness and ignorance.
Henry David Thoreau /

May we so love as never to have occasion to repent of our love!
Henry David Thoreau /

love

I have a great deal of company in the house, especially in the morning when nobody calls.
Henry David Thoreau /

I am sorry to think that you do not get a man's most effective criticism until you provoke him. Severe truth is expressed with some bitterness.
Henry David Thoreau - Journal /

truth

It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things.
Henry David Thoreau /

wisdom

Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth.
Henry David Thoreau /

truth

Make the most of your regrets never smother your sorrow, but tend and cherish it till it comes to have a separate and integral interest. To regret deeply is to live afresh.
Henry David Thoreau /

Not only must we be good, but we must also be good for something.
Henry David Thoreau /

Dreams are the touchstones of our character.
Henry David Thoreau /

dream

Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life so. Aim above morality. Be not simply good be good for something.
Henry David Thoreau /

What is called genius is the abundance of life and health.
Henry David Thoreau /

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
Henry David Thoreau /

There are old heads in the world who cannot help me by their example or advice to live worthily and satisfactorily to myself; but I believe that it is in my power to elevate myself this very hour above the common level of my life.
Henry David Thoreau /

Friends... they cherish one another's hopes. They are kind to one another's dreams.
Henry David Thoreau /

If it is surely the means to the highest end we know, can any work be humble or disgusting? Will it not rather be elevating as a ladder, the means by which we are translated?
Henry David Thoreau /

I have seen how the foundations of the world are laid, and I have not the least doubt that it will stand a good while.
Henry David Thoreau /

There are moments when all anxiety and stated toil are becalmed in the infinite leisure and repose of nature.
Henry David Thoreau /

It appears to be a law that you cannot have a deep sympathy with both man and nature.
Henry David Thoreau /

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