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The function of the rebel is to shake the fixated mores of the rigid order of civilization; and this shaking, though painful, is necessary if the society is to be saved from boredom and apathy. Obviously I do not refer to everyone who calls himself a rebel, but only to the authentic rebel. Civilization gets its first flower from the rebel.

— Rollo May Power and Innocence (1972)

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More quotes by Rollo May

Freedom is man's capacity to take a hand in his own development. It is our capacity to mold ourselves.

Man’s Search for Himself (1953)

The daimonic needs to be directed and channeled. Here is where human consciousness becomes so important.

Love and Will (1969)

A person can meet anxiety to the extent that his values are stronger than the threat.

Psychology and the Human Dilemma (1967)

Now it is no longer a matter of deciding what to do, but of deciding how to decide.

Love and Will (1969)

Life comes from physical survival; but the good life comes from what we care about.

Love and Will (1969)

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Attribution

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