"What and how much had I lost by trying to do only what was expected of me instead of what I myself had wished to do?"

Ralph Ellison Literature See all quotes by Ralph Ellison →

React to this quote

More by Ralph Ellison

“Closed societies are now the flimsiest of illusions, for all the outsiders are demanding in.”

“And I knew that it was better to live out one's own absurdity than to die for that of others.”

“And the mind that has conceived a plan of living must never lose sight of the chaos against which that pattern was conceived. That goes for societies as well as for individuals.”

“Let's not play these kids cheap; let's find out what they have that is a strength. What do they have that you can approach and build a bridge upon? Education is all a matter of building bridges, it seems to me.”

“Articles on Ellison at The New York Times”

“The clock ticked with empty urgency, as though trying to catch up with the time. In the street a siren howled.”

Resonant Thoughts

"Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt."

— Franz Kafka

Literature1894–1924

#identity

"I made such a fool of myself,” she lamented.“Love does not make you a fool.”“He didn’t love me back.”“That does not make you a fool, either.”“Just tell me …” Her voice cracked. “When does it stop hurt…"

— Mitch Albom

Literature1958

#love

"For nearly four decades I placed some ideation, some ideal, some abstraction, before personal love, foolishly - inhumanly - believing that some cause, some goal, some ideology, was the most important …"

— David Myatt

Politics1950

#love

"Another serious charge against Jesus was that of treason to his country. His admonition to refrain from hatred and retaliation and instead to love the Romans seemed to the patriots of the day nothing …"

— Kirby Page

Politics1890–1957

#philosophy