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Egoism is suicide. The egoist withers like a solitary barren tree; but pride, ambition, as the active effort after perfection, is the source of all that is great ... Yes! a man must prune away the stubborn egoism of his personality to give it the right of self-expression.

— Ivan Turgenev Rudin (1856)

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More quotes by Ivan Turgenev

Death is an old joke, but it comes like new to everyone.

Father and Sons (1862)

I have had no such experience, but imaging that to be loved by a woman one loves is a great happiness.

A Month in the Country (1855)

In your dark workshop, let the sun shine on other men! Even our dull life has its own pride, its own happiness!

On the Eve (1860)

Each of us is guilty by the fact that he lives.

On the Eve (1860)

Blessed is he who has been young in his youth.

Rudin (1856)

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Attribution

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