“ Men seek to be great; they would have offices, wealth, power, and fame. ”
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Compensation (1841). copy citation
| Author | Ralph Waldo Emerson |
|---|---|
| Source | Compensation |
| Topic | wealth fame |
| Date | 1841 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | in "Essays: First Series" |
| Note | |
| Weblink | https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Essays:_First_Series/Compensation |
Context
“to set up for himself; to truck and higgle for a private good; and, in particulars, to ride, that he may ride; to dress, that he may be dressed; to eat, that he may eat; and to govern, that he may be seen. Men seek to be great; they would have offices, wealth, power, and fame. They think that to be great is to possess one side of nature, — the sweet, without the other side, — the bitter.
This dividing and detaching is steadily counteracted. Up to this day, it must be owned, no projector has had the smallest success.”
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