“Philanthropic people lose all sense of humanity. It is their distinguishing character''

“Humanity takes itself too seriously. It is the world's original sin. If the cave-man had known how to laugh, History would have been different.” 

It is easy to live for others, everybody does. I call on you to live for yourself.

I have yet to know a poor man who has nostalgia for poverty.

Too much kindness and respect are given to the unseen and not enough to humanity. It seems that in our nature we loathe each other and bestow our respect and love on the abstract.

I hope that the entertainment I give has some lasting effect on people. I hope they see the beauty that I myself am seeking. I am trying to express a beauty that embraces not only physical characteristics and scenes, but the true fundamental emotions of humanity. Beauty. Beauty is what I am after.

“I love moving water, I love ships, I love the sharp definition, the concentrated humanity, the sublime solitude of life at sea. The dangers of it only make present to us the peril inherent in all existence, which the stupid, ignorant, untravelled land-worm never discovers; and the art of it, so mathematical, so exact, so rewarding to intelligence, appeals to courage and clears the mind of superstition, while filling it with humility and true religion.”

“The mass of mankind is divided into two classes, the Sancho Panzas who have a sense for reality, but no ideals, and the Don Quixotes with a sense for ideals, but mad.”

“One's friends are that part of the human race with which one can be human.”

“Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. In the first stage of life the mind is frivolous and easily distracted; it misses progress by failing in consecutiveness and persistence. This is the condition of children and barbarians, in which instinct has learned nothing from experience.”

“A feminist is anyone who recognizes the equality and full humanity of women and men.” 

“When humans are ranked instead of linked, everyone loses.” 

“There is a corollary to the conception of being too proud to fight. It is that the humble have to do most of the fighting.” 

“The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion, but, on the contrary, of its liberality and humanity. It is shorter to state the things forbidden than the things permitted: precisely because most things are permitted, and only a few things are forbidden.” 

“We lose our bearings entirely by speaking of the ‘lower classes’ when we mean humanity minus ourselves.” 

“I might inform those humanitarians who have a nightmare of new and needless babies (for some humanitarians have that sort of horror of humanity) that if the recent decline in the birth-rate were continued for a certain time, it might end in there being no babies at all; which would console them very much.” 

Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.

Those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.

A life is not worth much of which it cannot be said, when it comes to its close, that it was helpful to humanity.

Let’s rise above this animalistic behavior and be kind to one another.

We must in strength and humility meet hate with love.

I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality.

We who in engage in nonviolent direct action are not the creators of tension. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive.

We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence.