The comic spirit is given to us in order that we may analyze, weigh, and clarify things in us which nettle us, or which we are outgrowing, or trying to reshape
Thornton WilderRead
The planting of trees is the least self-centered of all that we can do. It is a purer act of faith than the procreation of children.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Planting trees is an act of selflessness and commitment to future generations.
Thornton Wilder's quote emphasizes that the act of planting trees is a selfless, noble deed that benefits not only the present but also future generations. Unlike the act of having children, which is often tied to personal desires, planting trees is purely about faith in the future and the well-being of the planet, highlighting the importance of environmental stewardship.
Themes
PlantingTreesSelflessnessFutureFaithNature
In practice
Example use cases
A speech at a rally focused on environmental conservation.
More from Thornton Wilder
All quotes →A man looks pretty small at a wedding, George. All those good women standing shoulder to shoulder, making sure that the knot's tied in a mighty public way.
Thornton WilderRead
Good-by, Good-by, world. Good-by, Grover's Corners... Mama and Papa. Good-by to clocks ticking... and Mama's sunflowers. And food and coffee. And new-ironed dresses and hot baths...and sleeping and waking up. Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you.
Thornton WilderRead
When you're safe at home you wish you were having an adventure; when you're having an adventure you wish you were safe at home.
Thornton WilderRead
Many great writers have been extraordinarily awkward in daily exchange, but the greatest give the impression that their style was nursed by the closest attention to colloquial speech.
Thornton WilderRead
I want you to try and remember what it was like to have been very young. And particularly the days when you were first in love; when you were like a person sleepwalking, and you didn’t quite see the street you were in, and didn’t quite hear everything that was said to you. You’re just a little bit crazy. Will you remember that, please?
Thornton WilderRead
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I've always been more interested in organisms that can move on their own than in stationary plants. But when I canoe or hike along the edge of lakes or oceans and see trees that seem to be growing out of rock faces, I am blown away. How do they do it?
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The teeming Autumn big with rich increase, bearing the wanton burden of the prime like widowed wombs after their lords decease.
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When you see the natural and almost universal craving in English sick for their 'tea,' you cannot but feel that nature knows what she is about. ... A little tea or coffee restores them. ... There is nothing yet discovered which is a substitute to the English patient for his cup of tea.
Florence NightingaleRead
In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they're still beautiful.
Alice WalkerRead