We must travel in the direction of our fear.
Interpretation
Facing our fears is essential for personal growth and success.
This quote by John Berryman emphasizes the importance of confronting our fears instead of avoiding them. By acknowledging and moving towards what we fear, we can overcome obstacles, grow as individuals, and find true fulfillment in life.
In practice
In a motivational speech to inspire people to take risks.
There is no such thing as Freedom (though it is the most important condition of human life, after Humility, -which does not exist either). There is only Slavery (walls around one) and absence-of-Slavery (ability to walk in any direction, or to remain still).
Life, friends, is boring. We must not say so.
The artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him. At that point, he's in business.
One must be ruthless with one's own writing or someone else will be.
Life, friends, is boring. We must not say so. After all, the sky flashes, the great sea yearns, we ourselves flash and yearn, and moreover my mother told me as a boy (repeatedly) 'Ever to confess you're bored means you have no inner Resources.' I conclude now I have no inner resources, because I am heavy bored.
I do strongly feel that among the greatest pieces of luck for high achievement is ordeal. Certain great artists can make out without it, Titian and others, but mostly you need ordeal. My idea is this: the artist is extremely lucky who is presented with the worst possible ordeal which will not actually kill him. At that point, he's in business: Beethoven's deafness, Goya's deafness, Milton's blindness, that kind of thing.
We know what unions have done for other people. We have seen it and we have studied and we have cherished the idea of unionism. We have seen the history and development of unions in this country and we tell the growers that we want nothing more, but that we want our own union and we are going to fight for it as long as it takes.
If parents snicker at racial and gender jokes, another generation will pass on the poison adults still have not had the courage to snuff out.
He who is silent and bows his head dies every time he does so. He who speaks aloud and walks with his head held high dies only once.
The war we have to wage today has only one goal, and that is to make the world safe for diversity.
The martyr cannot be dishonored. Every lash inflicted is a tongue of fame; every prison a more illustrious abode.
Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.