When one does get any credit in this life, it is usually for something that one has not done.
 George Orwell, Burmese Days (1934). copy citation

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Author George Orwell
Source Burmese Days
Topic life
Date 1934
Language English
Reference
Note
Weblink http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200051.txt

Context

“And the girl was in a mood to listen. After all, he had saved her from the buffalo, and she did not yet believe that those monstrous brutes could be harmless; for the moment he was almost a hero in her eyes. When one does get any credit in this life, it is usually for something that one has not done. It was one of those times when the conversation flows so easily, so naturally, that one could go on talking forever. But suddenly, their pleasure evaporated, they started and fell silent. They had noticed that they were no longer alone.” source