
“In Western Civilization, our elders are books.”
Source: The Practice of the Wild: Essays
“In Western Civilization, our elders are books.”
Source: The Practice of the Wild: Essays
Variant: Books are... companions, teachers, magicians, bankers of the treasures of mind. Books are humanity in print.
“Books have the power to create, destroy or change civilizations.”
"Humanity", Ch.II "Ideologies: A way to live", Part IV
“I wish I could write a book that will be read for as long as our civilization lasts…”
As quoted in The Winning Investment Habits of Warren Buffett & George Soros (2006) by Mark Tier, p. 219
Context: I wish I could write a book that will be read for as long as our civilization lasts... I would value it much more highly than any business success if I could contribute to an understanding of the world in which we live or, better yet, if I could help to preserve the economic and political system that has allowed me to flourish as a participant.
1870s, Society and Solitude (1870), Quotation and Originality
Sam Harris, “Religion, Terror, and Self-Transcendence.” The Ethical Culture Society and the Center for Inquiry, New York, NY, November 16, 2005 (broadcast on CSPAN-2)
2000s