The work an unknown good man has done is like a vein of water flowing hidden underground, secretly making the ground green.
Thomas CarlyleRead
May blessings be upon the head of Cadmus, the Phoenicians, or whoever it was that invented books.
Interpretation
The quote acknowledges the profound impact of books and their creators on society.
In this quote, Thomas Carlyle expresses gratitude towards the inventor of books, highlighting the essential role that written knowledge plays in the development and enrichment of human culture. By blessing the creator of books, Carlyle emphasizes the transformative power of literature and how it has enabled individuals to share ideas, preserve history, and foster enlightenment across generations.
In practice
This quote would be perfect for a speech at a library opening.
The work an unknown good man has done is like a vein of water flowing hidden underground, secretly making the ground green.
Thirty millions, mostly fools.
There is a great discovery still to be made in literature, that of paying literary men by the quantity they do not write.
For the superior morality, of which we hear so much, we too would desire to be thankful: at the same time, it were but blindness to deny that this superior morality is properly rather an inferior criminality, produced not by greater love of Virtue, but by greater perfection of Police; and of that far subtler and stronger Police, called Public Opinion.
Enjoying things which are pleasant; that is not the evil; it is the reducing of our moral self to slavery by them that is.
Clean undeniable right, clear undeniable might: either of these once ascertained puts an end to battle. All battle is a confused experiment to ascertain one and both of these.
To become comfortable with uncertainty is one of the primary goals in the training of a physician.
There are kids don't want to do something because they're afraid of looking stupid to their peers. There comes a time when they start protecting themselves, instead of extending. I want to make sure that they're always trying to extend themselves.
There still remain three studies suitable for free man. Arithmetic is one of them.
No trace of slavery ought to mix with the studies of the freeborn man. No study, pursued under compulsion, remains rooted in the memory.
Where educators are raising and combining their voices, the seeds of positive change have emerged. Collective voice, exercised through the union, is power - the power to drive real change for our kids, families and communities.
The method of instruction in Scouting is that of creating in the boy the desire to learn for himself.
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