"The secret of culture is to learn,..." - Quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson
The secret of culture is to learn, that a few great points steadily reappear, alike in the poverty of the obscurest farm, and in the miscellany of metropolitan life, and that these few are alone to be regarded,--the escape from all false ties; courage to be what we are; and love what is simple and beautiful; independence and cheerful relation, these are the essentials,--these, and the wish to serve,--to add somewhat to the well-being of men.
More by Ralph Waldo Emerson
More on Culture
“It is not part of a true culture to tame tigers, any more than it is to make sheep ferocious.”
“Manners are the happy ways of doing things; each one a stroke of genius or of love, now repeated and hardened into usage, they form at last a rich varnish, with which the routine of life is washed, and its details adorned. If they are superficial, so are the dew-drops which give such a depth to the morning meadows.”
“There is a saying in Baltimore that crabs may be prepared in fifty ways and that all of them are good.”
More on Simplicity
“As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness.”
“We tried in our simple way to lead our life in a manner that may make a difference to those of others.”
“Wars are Spinach. Life in general is the tough part. In war all you have to do is not worry and know how to read a map and co-ordinates.”