American philosopher, essayist, and poet (1803–1882)
42 quotes in the MindQuotes library.
Reading guide
For Emerson, an edition collecting the most approachable essays is preferable to an overly broad anthology.
Our starting point
Discovering self-reliance and independence of mind
It includes “Self-Reliance,” the essay that unlocks many quotations attributed to Emerson.
Exploring his relation to nature and Transcendentalism
A fine complement for seeing how Emerson connects observation, intuition, and inner life.
Merchant links help compare editions. Recommendations are editorially independent.
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”Create visual
“What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you.”Create visual
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”Create visual
“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”Create visual
“Every man is an impossibility until he is born. ~”Create visual
“The world makes way for a man who knows where he is going.”Create visual
“Every great and commanding movement in the annals of the world is the triumph of enthusi- asm. Nothing great was ever achieved without it.”Create visual
“Beware when God lets loose a thinker on this planet.”Create visual
“Men succeed when they realize that their failures are the preparation for their victories.”Create visual
“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”Create visual
“All mankind love a lover.”Create visual
“Love, and you shall be loved. All love is mathematically just, as much as the two sides of an algebraic equation.”Create visual
“No man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.”Create visual
“Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood. Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton , and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.”Create visual
“To be great is to be misunderstood.”Create visual
“No great man ever complains of want of opportunity.”Create visual
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matters compared to what lies within us.”Create visual
“We acquire the strength we have overcome.”Create visual
“Men talk as if victory were something fortunate. Work is victory.”Create visual
“Happiness is a perfume you cannot pour on others without getting a few drops on yourself.”Create visual
“Of cheerfulness, or a good temper, the more it is spent, the more of it remains.”Create visual
“Big jobs usually go to the men who prove their ability to outgrow small ones.”Create visual
“Trust men and they will be true to you; treat them greatly, and they will show themselves great.”Create visual
“Heartily know, When half-gods go, The gods arrive.”Create visual