“No sadder proof can be given by a man of his own littleness than disbelief in great men.”
1840s, Heroes and Hero-Worship (1840), The Hero as Divinity
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Thomas Carlyle481
Scottish philosopher, satirical writer, essayist, historian… 1795–1881Related quotes
W.B. Yeats (1865–1939) Irish poet and playwright
Letter to the Editor, Dublin Daily Express (27 February 1895)
“A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men.”
Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish philosopher, satirical writer, essayist, historian and teacher
Attributed to Carlyle in Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends And Influence People (1936), but this quotation is not found in Carlyle's known works. The first mention found in Google Books dates from 1908, where the Rev. John Timothy Stone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Timothy_Stone is quoted as claiming: 'The greatest critics of this world have been appreciators. Carlyle said, "You can discover a great man, or see a great man, by the way he treats little men.'<br>The quotation is subsequently found in slightly different forms, mostly in religious publications: "A great man shows his greatness by manner in which he treats little men" (1913, unattributed); The exact wording of Carnegie's quote suggests that it was taken from Stone's 1930 publication. <br class="br">Disputed
Bertrand Russell (1872–1970) logician, one of the first analytic philosophers and political activist
Dreams and Facts (1919)
1910s
“A great deal of love given to a few is better than a little to many.”
Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) 3rd President of the United States of America
H.L. Mencken (1880–1956) American journalist and writer
1920s, Notes on Democracy (1926)
Context: Liberty means self-reliance, it means resolution, it means enterprise, it means the capacity for doing without. The free man is one who has won a small and precarious territory from the great mob of his inferiors, and is prepared and ready to defend it and make it support him. All around him are enemies, and where he stands there is no friend. He can hope for little help from other men of his own kind, for they have battles of their own to fight. He has made of himself a sort of god in his little world, and he must face the responsibilities of a god, and the dreadful loneliness.
David Lynch (1946) American filmmaker, television director, visual artist, musician and occasional actor
McKenna interview (1992)
