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There are many wonderful things, and nothing is more wonderful than man.

Sophocles

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Topic

Nature of man Man and animals

Author

Sophocles

Source

Antigone

Medium

Play

Genre

Tragic play Greek theater

Language

Greek

Time

441 BC 440s 5th century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

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Original Citation

Sophocles. Ἀντιγόνη [Antigone]. c. 441 BC, Festival of Dionysus, Athens, Greece.

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Sophocles. "Antigone." The Oedipus Cycle: Oedipus Rex; Oedipus at Colonus; Antigone, translated by Dudley Fitts and Robert Fitzgerald. Mariner Books, 2002.

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The greatest country, the richest country, is not that which has the most capitalists, monopolists, immense grabbings, vast fortunes, with its sad, sad foil of extreme, degrading, damning poverty, but the land in which there are the most homesteads, freeholds-where wealth does not show such contrasts high and low, where all men have enough-a modest living-and no man is made possessor beyond the sane and beautiful necessities of the simple body and the simple soul.

Walt Whitman

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Topic

Economic equality National greatness

Speaker

Walt Whitman

Language

English

Time

1888 1880s 19th century

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Citation

Traubel, Horace. With Walt Whitman in Camden. Vol. 2, Mitchell Kennerley, 1915. Originally stated in a conversation with Walt Whitman, 3 Aug. 1888.

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Man is the measure of all things.

Protagoras

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Quoted in Theaetetus, by Plato

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Topic

Nature of man

Speaker

Protagoras

Author

Plato

Source

Theaetetus

Medium

Philosophical dialogue

Genre

Philosophical literature

Language

Greek

Time

420 BC 420s BC 5th century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

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Original Citation

Plato. Θεαίτητος [Theatetus]. c. 400 BC.

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Current Citation

Plato. Theatetus, translated by John McDowell. Oxford University Press, 2014.

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Democracy is the worst form of Government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.

Winston Churchill

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Topic

Democracy Government Politics

Speaker

Winston Churchill

Medium

Speech

Language

English

Time

1947 1940s 20th century

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Citation

Churchill, Winston. Address in the House of Commons. House of Commons meeting. 11 Nov. 1947, The Palace of Westminster, London, England, UK.

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Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

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Topic

Freedom Liberation The human condition

Author

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Source

The Social Contract

Genre

Political literature Philosophical literature

Statement Type

Metaphor, analogy and simile

Language

French

Time

1762 1760s 18th century

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Original Citation

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Du contrat social ou Principes du droit politique [On the Social Contract or Principles of Political Law]. Amsterdam: Marc Michel Rey, 1762, bk. 1, ch. 1.

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Current Citation

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. "Of the Social Contract." Of the Social Contract and Other Political Writings, translated by Quintin Hoare. Penguin Classics, 2012, bk. 1, ch. 1.

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With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.

Abraham Lincoln

Second Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln

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Reconstruction American Civil War American politics

Speaker

Abraham Lincoln

Source

Second Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln Presidential inaugural address

Medium

Speech

Genre

Political speech

Language

English

Time

1865 1860s 19th century

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Original Citation

Lincoln, Abraham. "Second Inaugural Address." 4 Mar. 1865, East Portico, US Capitol Building, Washington, DC, USA.

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Lincoln, Abraham. "Second Inaugral Address, March 4, 1865." Abraham Lincoln: Speeches and Writings 1859-1865, edited by Don E. Fehrenbacher. Library of America, 2018.

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How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the end of Being and ideal Grace.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

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Topic

Being in love Love

Author

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Source

Sonnets from the Portuguese

Medium

Sonnet Poem

Statement Type

Profession of love Question

Language

English

Time

1850 1850s 19th century

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Original Citation

Browning, Elizabeth Barrett. Sonnets from the Portuguese. London: Chapman and Hall, 1850, sonnet 43.

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Current Citation

Browning, Elizabeth Barrett. "Sonnets from the Portuguese." Aurora Leigh and Other Poems, edited by John Robert Glorney Bolton and Julia Bolton Holloway. Penguin Classics, 1996, sonnet 43.

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From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs!

Karl Marx

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Topic

Redistribution of wealth Socialism Communism Political theory Politics

Author

Karl Marx

Source

Critique of the Gotha Programme

Genre

Political literature Economic literature

Statement Type

Precepts and axioms

Language

German

Time

1883 1880s 19th century

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Original Citation

Marx, Karl. Kritik des Gothaer Programms [Critique of the Gotha Programme]. Berlin: Friedrich Engels, 1891, pt. 1.

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Current Citation

Marx, Karl. Critique of the Gotha Program, translated by Kevin B. Anderson. PM Press, 2022, pt. 1.

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It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

Jesus

Matthew 19:24

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Topic

Downsides of wealth Wealth Kingdom of God

Speaker

Jesus

Source

Gospel of Matthew The Bible

Medium

Scripture

Genre

Religious literature

Statement Type

Metaphor, analogy and simile

Language

Greek

Time

60 60s 1st century

Era

Classical antiquity

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Citation

The Holy Bible: The King James Version. 1611. (Matthew 19:24).

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Know thyself.

Thales

Quoted in The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, by Diogenes Laërtius

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Topic

Introspection Self-knowledge Self-awareness Wisdom

Speaker

Thales

Author

Diogenes Laërtius

Source

The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers

Medium

Presocratic fragment Fragment

Genre

Philosophical literature

Statement Type

Advice

Language

Greek

Time

3rd century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

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Original Citation

Thales. Quoted in The Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers, written by Diogenes Laërtius. c. 240 AD, bk. 1, ch. 1.

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Thales. Quoted in The Lives of Eminent Philosophers, written by Diogenes Laërtius, translated by Pamela Mensch, edited by James Miller. Oxford University Press, 2018, bk. 1, ch. 1.

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A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Lao Tzu

Tao Te Ching

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Topic

Patience Persistence One step at a time

Author

Lao Tzu

Source

Tao Te Ching

Genre

Philosophical literature Religious literature

Statement Type

Metaphor, analogy and simile

Language

Chinese

Time

400 BC 400s BC 5th century BC

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Original Citation

Laozi [Lao Tzu]. 道德經 [Tao Te Ching]. c. 400 BC, ch. 64.

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Current Citation

Laozi [Lao Tzu]. "The Natural Way of Lao Tzu." A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy, translated by Wing-Tsit Chan. Princeton University Press, 1969, ch. 64.

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All men by nature desire to know.

Aristotle

Metaphysics

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Topic

Curiosity Knowledge Human nature

Author

Aristotle

Source

Metaphysics

Genre

Philosophical literature

Language

Greek

Time

322 BC 320s BC 4th century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

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Original Citation

Aristotle. τὰ μετὰ τὰ φυσικά [Those after the physics]. c. 322 BC, bk. 1.

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Current Citation

Aristotle. Metaphysics, translated by Hugh Lawson-Tancred. Penguin Classics, 1999, book alpha.

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Fortune favors the brave.

Virgil

Aeneid

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Fortune favors the bold Bravery Courage

Speaker

Turnus

Author

Virgil

Source

Aeneid

Medium

Poem

Genre

Epic poem

Language

Latin

Time

19 BC 10s BC 1st century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

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Original Citation

Virgil. Aenē̆is [Aeneid]. 19 BC, bk. 10.

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Current Citation

Virgil. The Aeneid, translated by Robert Fagles. Penguin Classics, 2010, bk. 10.

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For the loser now will be later to win,
For the times they are a-changin'.

Bob Dylan

The Times They Are a-Changin' (song)

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Change Underdogs Justice

Speaker

Bob Dylan

Source

The Times They Are a-Changin' (song) The Times They Are a-Changin' (album)

Medium

Song

Genre

Protest music Folk music

Statement Type

Prophecies and predictions

Language

English

Time

1964 1960s 20th century

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Citation

Dylan, Bob. "The Times They Are a-Changin'." The Times They Are a-Changin'. Columbia Records, 1965.

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Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Abraham Lincoln

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Topic

Declaration of Independence American founding Equality

Speaker

Abraham Lincoln

Source

Gettysburg Address

Medium

Speech

Genre

Political speech

Language

English

Time

1863 1860s 19th century

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Original Citation

Lincoln, Abraham. "Gettysburg Address." At the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery. 19 Nov. 1863, Gettysburg, PA, USA.

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Current Citation

Lincoln, Abraham. "Address at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, November 19, 1863." Abraham Lincoln: Speeches and Writings 1859-1865, edited by Don E. Fehrenbacher. Library of America, 1989.

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Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

Leo Tolstoy

Anna Karenina

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Topic

Family dysfunction Family Parents and children

Author

Leo Tolstoy

Source

Anna Karenina

Medium

Novel

Language

Russian

Time

1877 1870s 19th century

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Original Citation

Tolstoy, Leo. Анна Каренина [Anna Karenina]. The Russian Messenger, 1875-1877. Serial.

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Current Citation

Tolstoy, Leo. Anna Karenina, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. Penguin Classics, 2014.

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All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.

George Orwell

Animal Farm

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Topic

Communism Equality

Author

George Orwell

Source

Animal Farm

Medium

Novel

Genre

Allegory Dystopian fiction

Language

English

Time

1945 1940s 20th century

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Citation

Orwell, George. Animal Farm: A Fairy Story. Secker and Warburg, 1945, ch. 10.

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A little rebellion now and then is a good thing.

Thomas Jefferson

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Topic

Rebellion Revolution Political theory Politics

Author

Thomas Jefferson

Source

Letters of Thomas Jefferson

Medium

Letter

Language

English

Time

1787 1780s 18th century

Era

American Revolutionary Period

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Original Citation

Jefferson, Thomas. Letter to James Madison. 30 Jan. 1787.

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Current Citation

Jefferson, Thomas. "James Madison, Jan. 30, 1787." The Life and Selected Writings of Thomas Jefferson, edited by Adrienne Koch and William Peden. Modern Library, 1998.

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I think, therefore I am.

René Descartes

Discourse on Method

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Topic

Nature of man

Author

René Descartes

Source

Discourse on Method

Genre

Philosophical literature

Language

French

Time

1637 1630s 17th century

Era

Age of Enlightenment

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Original Citation

Descartes, René [published anonymously]. Discours de la Méthode: Pour bien conduire sa raison, et chercher la vérité dans les sciences [Discourse on Method: To Conduct Reason Well, and Seek Truth in the Sciences]. Leiden, 1637, pt. 4.

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Current Citation

Descartes, René. Discourse on the Method, translated by Ian Maclean. Oxford University Press, 2008, pt. 4.

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History is written by the winners.

George Orwell

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Topic

History

Author

George Orwell

Source

As I Please Tribune

Medium

Article Newspaper

Language

English

Time

1944 1940s 20th century

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Original Citation

Orwell, George. "As I Please." Tribune, 4 Feb. 1944.

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Current Citation

Orwell, George. "As I Please." The Collected Essays, Journalism And Letters Of George Orwell, vol. 3: As I Please 1943-1945, edited by Sonia Orwell and Ian Angus. David R. Godine, 2004, no 18.

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