- Source
- Sartor Resartus
- Date
- 1836
- Local voice
- Fictional narrator · Diogenes Teufelsdröckh (framed voice)
Meaning of “Do the Duty which lies nearest thee”
The advice narrows attention from an overwhelming field of possibilities to the responsibility that is already clear enough to act on, with later duties expected to become clearer through action.
Where does it come from?
Sartor Resartus, Book II, Chapter IX, “The Everlasting Yea,” printed page 156 / Wikisource scan leaf 188 in The Works of Thomas Carlyle, Centenary Edition, Vol. I (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1896). “Do the Duty which lies nearest thee” follows the doubt/action sentence and is explicitly described as a precept that was of invaluable service to Teufelsdröckh. It remains fictional-philosophical and religious conduct-of-life rhetoric rather than a context-free productivity command.
Why the local voice matters
Sartor Resartus, Book II, Chapter IX; Project Gutenberg #1051. The maxim appears inside Teufelsdröckh’s spiritual conversion narrative; fictional-philosophical voice and religious context remain visible.
