All the knowledge I possess everyone else can acquire, but my heart is all my own.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
[W]hat counts is that one perceives excellence and dares to give it expression, which sounds little but is in fact a great deal.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The essence of greatness lies in recognizing excellence and having the courage to express it.
Goethe emphasizes the importance of perception and expression in appreciating excellence. To truly recognize something as exceptional and to dare to vocalize or showcase it is not a small task; it requires courage and conviction, suggesting that the act of expression is as significant as the excellence itself.
Themes
ExcellenceExpressionCourageArtRecognition
In practice
Example use cases
During a workshop on creativity, you could use this quote to inspire artists to express their unique visions.
More from Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
All quotes βDestiny grants us our wishes, but in its own way, in order to give us something beyond our wishes.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
There is a courtesy of the heart; it is allied to love. From its springs the purest courtesy in the outward behavior.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
I am amazed to see how deliberately I have entangled myself step by step. To have seen my position so clearly, and yet to have acted so like a child!
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
Seldom in the business and transactions of ordinary life, do we find the sympathy we want.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
Know thyself? If I knew myself I would run away.
Johann Wolfgang Von GoetheRead
Similar quotes
It's true that misunderstanding and lack of understanding are often themes in my fiction, but I am grateful for the moments when true understanding is achieved, especially between writer and reader. It's miraculous.
Ken LiuRead
My notion of a great novel is something like a five-hundred-page shaggy-dog story, with only the punch line omitted.
Edward AbbeyRead
I always try to keep that feeling of being on the edge. I'm afraid of knowing too well and seeming mechanical.
Catherine DeneuveRead
Creativity helps us realize that we don't have to understand everything. We can enjoy something -feel it and use it- without ever fully comprehending it.
Faith RinggoldRead
I wear myself out and struggle with the sun. And what a sun here! It would be necessary to paint here with gold and gemstones. It is wonderful.
Claude MonetRead
Wearing clothes should be a personal narrative of emotion. I always respond to fashion in an emotional way.
Andre Leon TalleyRead