To this generation I would say: Memorize some bit of verse of truth or beauty.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
. . . the weal of the race, and the cause of humanity, here and now, are enough To give life meaning and death as well.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life gains significance through our collective well-being and our commitment to humanity.
This quote by Edgar Lee Masters suggests that the purpose of life is intertwined with the welfare of others and the broader human experience. It implies that our actions in the present, aimed at benefiting society, grant both life and death a deeper meaning, emphasizing the importance of community and altruism in understanding existence.
Themes
MeaningHumanityLifePurposeCommunity
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about social responsibility, one might quote this to emphasize the importance of serving others.
More from Edgar Lee Masters
All quotes βThe tongue may be an unruly member-- But silence poisons the soul.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
Genius is a bend in the creek where bright water has gathered, and which mirrors the trees, the sky and the banks. It just does that because it is there and the scenery is there. Talent is a fine mirror with a silver frame, with the name of the owner engraved on the back.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
To love is to find your own soul Through the soul of the beloved one.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire-It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
And I never started to plow in my life That some one did not stop in the road And take me away to a dance or picnic. I ended up with forty acres; I ended up with a broken fiddleβ And a broken laugh, and a thousand memories, And not a single regret.
Edgar Lee MastersRead
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You can look at the words on this paper and, because they are the ones I am used to choosing, they will show you the shape of me. I am here to be read in the way you might read the impression of my weight in a bed after a still night, a restless night, a night not alone.
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