QuoteProject
Why, I hold fate Clasped in my fist, and could command the course Of time's eternal motion, hadst thou been One thought more steady than an ebbing sea.
John Ford
ShareWTF𝕏

Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote reflects the struggle of maintaining control over one's fate and emotions.

In this quote, John Ford illustrates a powerful sense of agency and control over destiny, suggesting that if the other person had been more steadfast in their emotions, the speaker could have commanded their fate like holding fate in their fist. It touches on the fragile nature of time and the impact of unwavering commitment in shaping life's direction.

Themes

FateControlEmotionsTimeDestiny

In practice

Example use cases

In a motivational speech discussing the power of personal agency.

More from John Ford

The main thing about directing is: photograph the people's eyes.
John FordRead

Similar quotes

At least five times, with the Arian and the Albigensian, with the Humanist skeptic, after Voltaire and after Darwin, the Christian Faith has to all appearance, gone to the dogs? But, in each of these five cases, it was the dog that died.
Gilbert K. ChestertonRead
Our need for worth is so powerful that whatever we base our identity and value on we essentially 'deify.' We will look to it with all the passion and intensity of worship and devotion, even if we think ourselves as highly irreligious.
Timothy KellerRead
Time is the old justice that examines all such offenders, and let Time try.
William ShakespeareRead
The human soul, provided it is pure and strong enough, can contact the unseen in waking life as well as in dreams: all that is required is withdrawal of the soul from the tumult of sensory life.
Seyyed Hossein NasrRead
But life isn't hard to manage when you've nothing to lose.
Ernest HemingwayRead
None of us really changes over time. We only become more fully what we are.
Anne RiceRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.