Browse 6 quotations connecting William George Jordan with Independence, with meanings, source notes and related themes.
Sources represented here include Self-Control, Its Kingship and Majesty, The Majesty of Calmness, The Power of Truth: Individual Problems and Possibilities.
“It is what a man makes of himself that counts.”
Jordan places developed character and chosen conduct above passive labels or circumstances when judging what a person can become.
Self-Control, Its Kingship and Majesty, “The Kingship of Self-Control.” Project Gutenberg #51469. The line belongs to late-nineteenth-century self-mastery literature and is not evidence that circumstance is irrelevant.
“Every individual is a marvel of unknown and unrealized possibilities.”
Jordan locates worth partly in capacities that have not yet been discovered or developed, resisting a final judgment based only on present performance.
Self-Control, Its Kingship and Majesty, later discussion of individual possibility. The sentence is motivational rhetoric about human potential rather than a measurable universal prediction.
“The individual must look upon himself as an investment, of untold possibilities if rightly developed.”
Jordan asks the reader to regard personal capacities as worth developing rather than measuring value solely through current achievement or external recognition.
The Majesty of Calmness, “The Dignity of Self-Reliance.” The represented 1900 work is public domain; the investment metaphor belongs to Jordan’s conduct-of-life rhetoric, not financial advice.
“The man who is self-reliant does not live in the shadow of some one else's greatness; he thinks for himself, depends on himself, and acts for himself.”
Self-reliance is defined as independent judgment and action rather than imitation of someone whose reputation is already established.
The Majesty of Calmness, “The Dignity of Self-Reliance.” Jordan’s ideal of independence is period self-development writing; it does not require isolation or refusal of legitimate help.
“Man never rises to the dignity of true living until he has the courage that dares to face ingratitude calmly, and to pursue his course unchanged when his good works meet with thanklessness or disdain.”
Jordan separates the worth of principled action from the applause it receives, arguing that worthwhile conduct sometimes has to continue without gratitude or recognition.
The Power of Truth, “The Courage to Face Ingratitude.” Project Gutenberg #56020; first published August 1902. Jordan’s standard is moral perseverance, not indifference to all criticism.
“Whoever seeks to work out for himself his destiny, the life-work that all his nature tells him should be his, bravely, calmly and with due consideration of the rights of others and his duties to them, is a reformer.”
Individual vocation is paired with duties to other people: Jordan’s reformer follows a personally meaningful course without treating self-direction as permission to ignore others’ rights.
The Power of Truth, “The Way of the Reformer.” The qualifying language about rights and duties is retained because it prevents the individualist passage from being reduced to purely self-centered advice.