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Must helpless man, in ignorance sedate,
Roll darkling down the torrent of his fate?

— Samuel Johnson The Vanity of Human Wishes (1749)

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Fate

More quotes by Samuel Johnson

When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.

Life of Samuel Johnson (1791)

Merriment is always the effect of a sudden impression. The jest which is expected is already destroyed.

The Idler (1758)

A man ought to read just as inclination leads him; for what he reads as a task will do him little good.

Life of Samuel Johnson (1791)

Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves, or we know where we can find information upon it.

Life of Samuel Johnson (1791)

A cucumber should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out, as good for nothing.

The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides (1785)

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One country, one constitution, one destiny.

Daniel Webster

We may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us.

John Lewis

Destiny is not a matter of chance; it is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for; it is a thing to be achieved.

William Jennings Bryan

“Destiny,” said John. “The ghastliest word a man can speak.”

Poul Anderson The Corridors of Time (1965)

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Samuel Johnson (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.