The Marginalian
The Marginalian

Search results for “Letter to Van Gogh”

Pioneering Mathematician G.H. Hardy on How to Find Your Purpose and What Is Most Worth Aspiring for
Pioneering Mathematician G.H. Hardy on How to Find Your Purpose and What Is Most Worth Aspiring for

“If a man has any genuine talent he should be ready to make almost any sacrifice in order to cultivate it to the full.”

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Germaine de Staël’s Guide to Haters: The First Modern Woman on Meritocracy, the Psychology of Why the Masses Rejoice in Tearing Down Successful Individuals, and the Only True Measure of Genius
Germaine de Staël’s Guide to Haters: The First Modern Woman on Meritocracy, the Psychology of Why the Masses Rejoice in Tearing Down Successful Individuals, and the Only True Measure of Genius

“The life of man, so short in itself, is still of longer duration than the judgment and the affections of his contemporaries.”

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Sir Thomas Browne on the Transcendent Torture of Romantic Friendship
Sir Thomas Browne on the Transcendent Torture of Romantic Friendship

“United souls are not satisfied with embraces, but desire to be truly each other.”

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Speech, Action, and the Human Condition: Hannah Arendt on How We Invent Ourselves and Reinvent the World
Speech, Action, and the Human Condition: Hannah Arendt on How We Invent Ourselves and Reinvent the World

“The smallest act in the most limited circumstances bears the seed of … boundlessness, because one deed, and sometimes one word, suffices to change every constellation.”

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The Heroism of Being a Contrarian: Jacob Bronowski on the Essential Character Trait of the Creative Person
The Heroism of Being a Contrarian: Jacob Bronowski on the Essential Character Trait of the Creative Person

“The creative personality is always one that looks on the world as fit for change and on himself as an instrument for change.”

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The Art of Receptivity: Hilton Als on Love
The Art of Receptivity: Hilton Als on Love

“The thing seemingly freely given often isn’t. It is rare to receive the gift of love, for instance, from someone who doesn’t want to be celebrated for their generosity in having offered it.”

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Trailblazing Astronomer Maria Mitchell on How We Co-Create Each Other and Recreate Ourselves Through Friendship
Trailblazing Astronomer Maria Mitchell on How We Co-Create Each Other and Recreate Ourselves Through Friendship

“Whatever our degree of friends may be, we come more under their influence than we are aware.”

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How Bach Will Save Your Soul: German Philosopher Josef Pieper on the Hidden Source of Music’s Supreme Power
How Bach Will Save Your Soul: German Philosopher Josef Pieper on the Hidden Source of Music’s Supreme Power

“Music opens a path into the realm of silence.”

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Paul Gauguin’s Advice on Overcoming Rejection, Breaking Free of Public Opinion, and Staying True to Your Creative Vision
Paul Gauguin’s Advice on Overcoming Rejection, Breaking Free of Public Opinion, and Staying True to Your Creative Vision

“One day, you will feel a joy in having resisted the temptation to hate, and there is truly intoxicating poetry in the goodness of him who has suffered.”

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Diseases of the Will: Neuroscience Founding Father Santiago Ramón y Cajal on the Six Psychological Flaws That Keep the Talented from Achieving Greatness
Diseases of the Will: Neuroscience Founding Father Santiago Ramón y Cajal on the Six Psychological Flaws That Keep the Talented from Achieving Greatness

“Our neurons must be used … not only to know but also to transform knowledge; not only to experience but also to construct.”

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