“I would have girls regard themselves not as adjectives but as nouns.”
Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902) Suffragist and Women's Rights activist
Lila (1991)
“I would have girls regard themselves not as adjectives but as nouns.”
Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902) Suffragist and Women's Rights activist
Gore Vidal (1925–2012) American writer
Source: 1990s, Screening History (1992), Ch. 1: The Prince and the Pauper, pp.2-3
Gore Vidal (1925–2012) American writer
"Growing Up With Gore Vidal," Screening History (1994), p. 24.
1990s
Context: A current pejorative adjective is narcissistic. Generally, a narcissist is anyone better looking than you are, but lately the adjective is often applied to those “liberals” who prefer to improve the lives of others rather than exploit them. Apparently, a concern for others is self-love at its least attractive, while greed is now a sign of the highest altruism. But then to reverse, periodically, the meanings of words is a very small price to pay for our vast freedom not only to conform but to consume.
Russell L. Ackoff (1919–2009) Scientist
Source: 1960s, Scientific method: optimizing applied research decisions, 1962, p. 108 as cited in: Charles West Churchman, Richard O. Mason (1976) World modeling: a dialogue. p. 23.
Benjamin Lee Whorf (1897–1941) American linguist
Whorf (1937) "Grammer categories" in: Language, (1945) Vol 21. p. 1-11.
Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968) American clergyman, activist, and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement
1960s, Why Jesus Called A Man A Fool (1967)
Context: This man was a fool because he failed to realize his dependence on God... this man-centered foolishness is still alive today. In fact, it has gotten to the point today that some are even saying that God is dead. The thing that bothers me about it is that they didn't give me full information, because at least I would have wanted to attend God's funeral. And today I want to ask, who was the coroner that pronounced Him dead? I want to raise a question, how long had He been sick? I want to know whether He had a heart attack or died of chronic cancer. These questions haven't been answered for me, and I'm going on believing and knowing that God is alive. You see, as long as love is around, God is alive. As long as justice is around, God is alive. There are certain conceptions of God that needed to die, but not God. You see, God is the supreme noun of life; He's not an adjective. He is the supreme subject of life; He's not a verb. He's the supreme independent clause; He's not a dependent clause. Everything else is dependent on Him, but He is dependent on nothing.
Theodor W. Adorno (1903–1969) German sociologist, philosopher and musicologist known for his critical theory of society
Source: Jargon der Eigentlichkeit [Jargon of Authenticity] (1964), p. 6
“The Psalms wrap nouns and verbs around our pain better than any other book.”
Joni Eareckson Tada (1949) American artist
Source: Anger: Aim It in the Right Direction