“There is special providence in the fall of a sparrow.”

— William Shakespeare , Hamlet

Source: Hamlet

Last update Sept. 28, 2023. History

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William Shakespeare 699

English playwright and poet 1564–1616

Related quotes

“Not a whit, we defy augury: there's a special
providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now,
'tis not to come; if it be not to come, it will be
now; if it be not now, yet it will come: the
readiness is all.”

William Shakespeare Hamlet

Source: Hamlet

“Evolution discloses a meaning in death, although the meaning is like some of the berries that Darwin tasted in the Galapagos, "acid & Austere." There is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. Even Drought bears fruit. Even death is a seed.”

Jonathan Weiner (1953) American nonfiction writer

Source: The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time (1994), Chapter 5, A Special Providence

“Only God sees the sparrow fall, but even God doesn't do anything about it.”

John Steinbeck book The Winter of Our Discontent

Source: The Winter of Our Discontent

“I believe not only in "special providences," but in the whole universe as one infinite complexity of "special providences."”

Charles Kingsley (1819–1875) English clergyman, historian and novelist

Source: Attributed, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), P. 279.

“I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man
Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand”

Bob Dylan (1941) American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and artist

Song lyrics, Shot of Love (1981), Every Grain Of Sand
Variant: "I am hanging in the balance of a perfect, finished plan" (The Bootleg Series, Vols. 1–3)

“There is a special providence for drunkards, fools, and the United States of America.”

Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898) German statesman, Chancellor of Germany

This saying appears as early as 1849 in the form "the special providence over the United States and little children", attributed to Abbé Correa. There is no good evidence that Bismarck ever repeated it. See talk page for more details.
Misattributed

“Sparrow-hawks, Ma'am”

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769–1852) British soldier and statesman

Queen Victoria, concerned about the sparrows that had nested in the roof of the partly finished Crystal Palace, asked Wellington's advice as to how to get rid of them. Wellington’s reply was succinct and to the point, Sparrow-hawks, Ma'am. He was right, by the time the Crystal Palace was opened by the Queen in 1851, they had all gone!
Source: Historic UK http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Duke-of-Wellington/