Nobody holds a good opinion of a man who has a low opinion of himself.
Anthony TrollopeRead
A farmer's horse is never lame, never unfit to go. Never throws out curbs, never breaks down before or behind. Like his master he is never showy. He does not paw and prance, and arch his neck, and bid the world admire his beauties...and when he is wanted, he can always do his work.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote illustrates the value of practicality and reliability over showmanship and vanity.
In this quote, Anthony Trollope emphasizes the importance of being dependable and practical rather than seeking admiration or recognition for superficial qualities. The farmer's horse symbolizes a reliable workhorse, exemplifying the ideal that true worth lies in one's ability to perform and contribute consistently without the need for ostentation. Trollope contrasts this with showy behaviors, suggesting that those who are genuinely capable do not need to boast or seek validation, as their effectiveness speaks for itself.
Themes
ReliabilityWorkPracticalityHumilityEffectiveness
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about teamwork, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of dependable members over flamboyant show-offs.
More from Anthony Trollope
All quotes →Romance is very pretty in novels, but the romance of a life is always a melancholy matter. They are most happy who have no story to tell.
Anthony TrollopeRead
There is no happiness in love, except at the end of an English novel.
Anthony TrollopeRead
That I can read and be happy while I am reading, is a great blessing.
Anthony TrollopeRead
A man's love, till it has been chastened and fastened by the feeling of duty which marriage brings with it, is instigated mainly by the difficulty of pursuit.
Anthony TrollopeRead
But she knew this,—that it was necessary for her happiness that she should devote herself to some one. All the elegancies and outward charms of life were delightful, if only they could be used as the means to some end. As an end themselves they were nothing.
Anthony TrollopeRead
Similar quotes
Translation rewrites a foreign text in terms that are intelligible and interesting to readers in the receiving culture. Doing so is akin to committing an act of ethnocentric violence by uprooting the text from the language and culture that gave it life. Translating into current, standard English at once conceals that violence and homogenizes foreign cultures.
Lawrence VenutiRead
One day the absurdity of the almost universal human belief in the slavery of other animals will be palpable. We shall then have discovered our souls and become worthier of sharing this planet with them.
Martin Luther King, Jr.Read
What consoles one nowadays is not repentance but pleasure. Repentance is quite out of date.
Oscar WildeRead
I ask the fundamental question of rationality: Why do you believe what you believe? What do you think you know and how do you think you know it?
Eliezer YudkowskyRead
Once the light of our awareness is cast on any darkness, then it cannot hide and it cannot remain. Such is the law of consciousness.
Marianne WilliamsonRead
If there is one thing clear about the centuries dominated by the factory and the wheel, it is that although the machine can make everything from a spoon to a landing-craft, a natural joy in earthly living is something it never has and never will be able to manufacture.
Henry BestonRead