Variant: It's better to light a candle than curse the darkness.
Source: Men at Arms: The Play
“It is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.”
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884–1962) American politician, diplomat, and activist, and First Lady of the United States
Variant: Light a candle instead of cursing the darkness.
Source: This is My Story
John S. Hall (1960) Poet, author, singer, lawyer
October 30
Quotes from Daily Negations (2007)
George Carlin (1937–2008) American stand-up comedian
Books, When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? (2004)
“She would rather light a candle than curse the darkness, and her glow has warmed the world.”
Adlai Stevenson (1900–1965) mid-20th-century Governor of Illinois and Ambassador to the UN
Remark upon learning of the death of Eleanor Roosevelt, drawing upon the motto of the Christopher Society: "It is better to light one candle than curse the darkness." ; quoted in The New York Times (8 November 1962)
“It is better to recognise that we are in darkness than to pretend that we can see the light.”
Hedley Bull (1932–1985) Australian academic
Source: The Anarchical Society: A Study of Order in World Politics
“Enlightenment is scary. Sometimes things look better in the dark.”
David Levithan (1972) American author and editor
Source: How They Met, and Other Stories
“Sometimes it is easier to see the light when you stand partly in the darkness.”
Garth Nix book Mister Monday
Source: Mister Monday
