You have already failed if you need a lot of inspectors.
—Unknown
It seemed to be a necessary ritual that he should prepare himself for sleep by meditating under the solemnity of the night sky… a mysterious transaction between the infinity of the soul and the infinity of the universe.
—Victor Hugo (1802–85) French Novelist
No matter how close to yours another’s steps have grown, in the end there is one dance you’ll do alone.
—H. Jackson Brown, Jr. (b.1940) American Self-Help Author
That which happens to the soil when it ceases to be cultivated, happens to man himself when he foolishly forsakes society for solitude; the brambles grow up in his desert heart.
—Antoine de Rivarol (1753–1801) French Writer, Epigrammatist
A man by himself is in bad company.
—Eric Hoffer (1902–83) American Philosopher, Author
Language has created the word “loneliness” to express the pain of being alone, and the word “solitude” to express the glory of being alone.
—Paul Tillich (1886–1965) German-American Theologian, Philosopher
Solitude is as needful to the imagination as society is wholesome for the character.
—James Russell Lowell (1819–91) American Poet, Critic
I love people. I love my family, my children… but inside myself is a place where I live all alone and that’s where you renew your springs that never dry up.
—Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) American Novelist, Human Rights Activist
Solitude is the playfield of Satan.
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977) Russian-born American Novelist
A solitude is the audience-chamber of God.
—Walter Savage Landor (1775–1864) English Writer, Poet
I really only have Perfect Fun with myself. Other people won’t stop and look at the things I want to look at or, if they do, they stop to please me or to humor me or to keep the peace.
—Katherine Mansfield (1888–1923) New Zealand-born British Author
I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
The good and the wise lead quiet lives.
—Euripides (480–406 BCE) Ancient Greek Dramatist
If you are afraid of loneliness, don’t marry.
—Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) Russian Short-Story Writer
The strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone.
—Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) Norwegian Playwright
You can get help from teachers, but you are going to have to learn a lot by yourself, sitting alone in a room.
—Theodor Seuss Geisel (‘Dr. Seuss’) (1904–91) American Children’s Books Writer, Writer, Cartoonist, Animator
It is better to travel alone than with a bad companion.
—African Proverb
The best thinking has been done in solitude. The worst has been done in turmoil.
—Thomas Edison (1847–1931) American Inventor, Scientist, Entrepreneur
Solitude is independence.
—Hermann Hesse (1877–1962) German-born Swiss Novelist, Poet
What would a man do if he were compelled to live always in the sultry heat of society, and could never better himself in cool solitude?
—Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–64) American Novelist, Short Story Writer
No matter how reclusive we tend to be, we picture the after-life as a community of souls. It is one thing to seek privacy in this life; it is another to face eternity alone.
—Robert Brault
Solitude vivifies; isolation kills.
—Philibert Joseph Roux (1780–1854) French Surgeon
One of the greatest necessities in America is to discover creative solitude.
—Carl Sandburg (1878–1967) American Biographer, Novelist, Socialist
You cannot build up a character in a solitude; you need a formed character to stand a solitude.
—Austin O’Malley (1858–1932) American Aphorist, Ophthalmologist
Solitude is the best nurse of wisdom.
—Laurence Sterne (1713–68) Irish Anglican Novelist, Clergyman
When from our better selves we have too long been parted by the hurrying world, and droop. Sick of its business, of its pleasures tired, how gracious, how benign in solitude.
—William Wordsworth (1770–1850) English Poet
An artist is always alone—if he is an artist. No, what the artist needs is loneliness.
—Henry Miller (1891–1980) American Novelist
National isolation breeds national neurosis.
—Hubert Humphrey (1911–78) American Head of State, Politician
Leisure and solitude are the best effect of riches, because mother of thought. Both are avoided by most rich men, who seek company and business; which are signs of their being weary of themselves.
—William Temple (1881–1944) English Theologian, Archbishop
If you are idle, be not solitary; if you are solitary, be not idle.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
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