Meaning of “I would rather die having spoken after my…”

Essays, First Series, essay II, “Self-Reliance,” Project Gutenberg #2944. “Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist” follows Emerson’s claim that society conspires against the manhood of its members through conformity. The represented Gutenberg witness prints a comma after “man,” while the frozen catalog quotation omits that punctuation; the wording is otherwise the same. It remains Transcendentalist moral rhetoric about self-trust and independence rather than a universal instruction to reject social norms or expertise.

Walden; Thoreau contrasts one’s own deliberate track with paths chosen by others.

Narrative, Chapter X; the line follows Douglass’s physical resistance to Edward Covey and precedes his resolve never again to be a slave in fact.

The Brothers Karamazov, Book II, Chapter 4, “A Lady of Little Faith,” Constance Garnett translation, verified against Project Gutenberg #28054 and Wikisource. Father Zossima tells the visitor, “Above all, don’t lie to yourself,” and develops the warning into an argument about self-deception, respect and love; this is fictional character counsel inside the novel.

Proverbs 10:9 in the King James Version; the opening clause is quoted here.

Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3; Polonius gives Laertes this advice before Laertes leaves for France.