Eric Hoffer
Eric Hoffer
Eric Hofferwas an American moral and social philosopher. He was the author of ten books and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in February 1983. His first book, The True Believer, was widely recognized as a classic, receiving critical acclaim from both scholars and laymen, although Hoffer believed that The Ordeal of Change was his finest work...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth25 July 1902
CountryUnited States of America
life wise wisdom
Wise living consists perhaps less in acquiring good habits than in acquiring as few habits as possible.
cutting people elements
There is probably an element of malice in our readiness to overestimate people - we are, as it were, laying up for ourselves the pleasure of later cutting them down to size.
men ideas evil
It is remarkable by how much a pinch of malice enhances the penetrating power of an idea or an opinion. Our ears, it seems, are wonderfully attuned to sneers and evil reports about our fellow men.
yesterday achievement each-day
There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still have to prove our worth anew each day; we have to prove that we are as good today as we were yesterday. But when we have a valid alibi for not achieving anything we are fixed, so to speak, for life.
mind body reverence
We have rudiments of reverence for the human body, but we consider as nothing the rape of the human mind.
passion self desire
A mass movement attracts and holds a following not because it can satisfy the desire for self-advancement, but because it can satisfy the passion for self-renunciation.
promise bitterness evoke
There is a time when the word "eventually" has the soothing effect of a promise, and a time when the word evokes in us bitterness and scorn.
nature men goal
Man's chief goal in life is still to become and stay human, and defend his achievements against the encroachment of nature.
freedom men liberty
Unless a man has the talents to make something of himself, freedom is an irksome burden.
failure responsibility weak
It is to escape the responsibility for failure that the weak so eagerly throw themselves into grandiose undertakings.
fear formidable power-and-fear
It is when power is wedded to chronic fear that it becomes formidable.
diversity vehement literature
We are least open to precise knowledge concerning the things we are most vehement about.
opposites soul tension
It is the pull of opposite poles that stretches souls. And only stretched souls make music.
spring vigor orthodox
A heresy can spring only from a system that is in full vigor.