Responsibility quotes — Page 2

Lyceum Address, January 27, 1838. Lincoln is discussing mob violence, disregard for law and the preservation of republican institutions; the sentence is not a generic prediction about national collapse.

The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part II, Section II, Chapter III; the sentence contrasts justice as society’s foundation with beneficence as its ornament.

The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part II, Section II, discussion comparing justice with beneficence and the obligations that society may enforce.

The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part III; Smith asks what rewards ordinarily encourage industry, prudence, truth, justice, and humanity.

The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part VI, Section II discussion of systems that make virtue consist in benevolence; historical spelling “œconomy” is retained.

The Theory of Moral Sentiments, Part III discussion of the general rules of morality; Smith contrasts exact rules of justice with more flexible rules of prudence and generosity.

The Wealth of Nations, Book II, Chapter II; Project Gutenberg #3300. “Neat rent” is Smith’s historical term for net rent after management, repair, and other necessary charges.

The Wealth of Nations, Book I, Chapter VI; Project Gutenberg #3300. The statement is part of Smith’s eighteenth-century theory of price and income distribution.

Moral printed after “Hercules and the Wagoner” in the Townsend translation; Hercules first tells the driver to help himself.

Moral printed after “The Monkeys and Their Mother” in the Townsend translation.

Moral printed after “The Oak and the Woodcutters”; the oak laments wedges made from its own branches.

Joseph Jacobs, The Fables of Aesop, “The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf,” Project Gutenberg #28. The wise man of the village gives the moral after the boy’s repeated false cries cause the villagers to ignore his real warning.

Moral printed after “The Widow and the Sheep”; the widow injures the sheep while trying to avoid the shearer’s expense.

The Federalist No. 70, reviewed against the Gideon-edition Wikisource transcription. Hamilton's 'Energy in the executive...' sentence introduces his constitutional case for executive unity, duration, support and competent powers; it remains eighteenth-century institutional argument rather than a timeless empirical rule about government.

The Black Tulip, Chapter VIII, “An Invasion,” Project Gutenberg #965. Exact-witness review corrects the inherited Chapter VI locator: the narrator says that evil minds soon grow familiar with evil thoughts immediately after Boxtel first shrinks from informing against Van Baerle and before he rationalizes the act.

Oenone, in The Early Poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, Project Gutenberg #8601. Pallas speaks the lines while arguing that self-reverence, self-knowledge and self-control lead to a life governed by right rather than by reward; this is poetic character speech, not a prose maxim detached from the poem.

Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie; Carnegie describes his decision to concentrate his business attention on iron and steel.

The Gospel of Wealth; Carnegie argues that surplus wealth carries social responsibilities during the owner’s lifetime.

Andrew Carnegie, 'Wealth,' North American Review, June 1889 (the first essay later known as The Gospel of Wealth). It is historical philanthropic/economic argument rather than a settled economic finding.

The Gospel of Wealth, first essay; 1889 North American Review text. Carnegie explicitly separates ordinary competence needed for family maintenance and education from the concentrated surplus wealth his argument addresses.

The Gospel of Wealth, first essay; 1889 North American Review text. The excerpt begins Carnegie’s longer description of what he believes wealthy people owe to dependents and community.

Nicomachean Ethics, Book II, Chapter VI; the public-domain English translation defines virtue through deliberate choice and the relative mean.

Politics: A Treatise on Government, Book III, Chapter XVI, William Ellis translation; represented through the 1912 Dent witness / Project Gutenberg #6762. In comparing rule by a person with rule by law, Aristotle says that passion can affect even the best rulers and concludes that law is reason without desire.

Politics: A Treatise on Government, Book III, Chapter VI, William Ellis translation; represented through the 1912 Dent witness / Project Gutenberg #6762. Aristotle distinguishes governments ordered toward the common good from regimes serving rulers’ private advantage; the exact sentence falls before the edition’s Chapter VII heading and therefore belongs to Chapter VI.

How to Live on 24 Hours a Day, “The Daily Miracle.” Bennett contrasts time with money and property while arguing that only the current flow of time can actually be wasted.

The Human Machine, discussion of mental control. The maxim belongs to Bennett’s period self-discipline philosophy and should not be read as a clinical claim that thoughts or symptoms are always voluntarily controllable.

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Part II, thirteen-virtue table: Resolution. Project Gutenberg #148 (Charles W. Eliot / Harvard Classics, 1909) preserves the represented wording; the reviewed direct locator is Wikisource Section Thirty Six.

Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, before March 1784; Founders Online. This is historical emigration advice written for Europeans and is not a claim about present-day U.S. labor or immigration conditions.

Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, before March 1784; Founders Online. The lowercase opening is retained because this is a clause from Franklin’s longer sentence about strangers, law, liberty and industry.

Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, before March 1784; Founders Online. The statement is eighteenth-century description and advocacy, not modern financial, employment or immigration guidance.

Poor Richard’s Almanack; a compact maxim about cumulative effort.

Poor Richard’s Almanack; the maxim appears in Franklin’s collected Poor Richard material.

Poor Richard’s Almanack; a compact maxim about managing work before accumulated demands begin managing you.

Poor Richard’s Almanack for 1736; Franklin uses a short contrast to emphasize the persistence of financial obligations.

Poor Richard’s Almanack.

Poor Richard’s Almanack; the maxim connects disciplined use of working time with the ability to gain leisure.

Poor Richard’s Almanack; proverb on routine, work and practical discipline.

Poor Richard’s Almanack.

The Morals of Chess; Founders Online authoritative Franklin Papers text. The wording begins mid-sentence after Franklin’s condition that the game is not being played rigorously; source context is preserved here.

Benjamin Franklin, The Morals of Chess, rule 3 in the reviewed public-domain Wikisource transcription. 'No false move should ever be made...' appears in Franklin's etiquette for fair play and functions as an ethical analogy about honesty in competition, not game-theory or behavioral-science evidence.

The Way to Wealth, debt-and-credit section; Project Gutenberg #43855. The line immediately reinforces Franklin’s warning about debt and truthfulness.

The Way to Wealth, frugality section; Project Gutenberg #43855. “Pennyworth” refers to an apparent bargain and the warning is about false economy.

The Way to Wealth / Poor Richard Improved, industry section; represented by Project Gutenberg #43855. Father Abraham is compiling maxims from Franklin’s earlier Almanacks.

The Way to Wealth, debt-and-credit section; Project Gutenberg #43855. This is eighteenth-century moral rhetoric and should not be read as a judgment that indebted people are inherently dishonest.

The Way to Wealth; a Poor Richard maxim on delay and useful employment of time.

The Way to Wealth, frugality section; Project Gutenberg #43855. Father Abraham uses the maxim while warning auction buyers against purchases made only because they seem cheap.

The Way to Wealth; Father Abraham repeats the Poor Richard maxim while warning about small but cumulative expenses.

The Way to Wealth, Franklin’s compilation of Poor Richard maxims.

The Way to Wealth, frugality section; Project Gutenberg #43855 preserves the historical spelling “expences.” The ship image is one of the Poor Richard maxims quoted by Father Abraham.

The Way to Wealth, in Franklin’s discussion of debt and credit.

The Way to Wealth, section III, frugality discussion, Project Gutenberg #43855. Father Abraham repeats the Poor Richard maxim “Buy what thou hast no need of, and ere long thou shalt sell thy necessaries” while warning auction-goers that an apparent bargain can become dear when the purchase is unnecessary. The persona and eighteenth-century moral-financial context remain explicit; this is not individualized financial advice.

Mysticism and Logic and Other Essays, within Russell’s philosophical discussion of human value and the world. The line is preserved as ethical argument rather than converted into a promise that circumstances are controllable.

Character Building, “Some Great Little Things,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington places this instruction among small daily habits of order, quiet, cleanliness, reading and reflection that he treats as important parts of character formation.

Character Building, “Some Great Little Things,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Near the close of the address, Washington urges regular times for study, recreation, sleep, reading and reflection, treating regularity as part of everyday self-discipline.

Character Building, “Last Words,” Project Gutenberg #60484. In the closing address, Washington warns departing students not to feel superior to their families after schooling and then tells them to go home, live simply, help their parents and practise politeness.

Character Building, “Some Great Little Things,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington tells students to make order and neatness habitual in crowded rooms, immediately before his advice to work and close doors quietly.

Character Building, “Growth,” Project Gutenberg #60484. The line sits inside a longer appeal to remember parents and others invested in the student’s success.

Character Building, “Have You Done Your Best?”, Project Gutenberg #60484. The excerpt is part of Washington’s invitation to review the school year honestly.

Character Building, “Growth,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington uses the phrase while urging students to make the coming year their best.

Character Building, “The Importance of Being Reliable,” Project Gutenberg #60484. The race language belongs to Washington’s historical response to discriminatory judgments and employment conditions.

Character Building, “The Virtue of Simplicity,” Project Gutenberg #60484. The sentence refers specifically to students doing building work at Tuskegee.

Character Building, “Growth,” Project Gutenberg #60484. The line is part of an exhortation to Tuskegee students at the beginning of a new period of study.

Character Building, “Each One His Part,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington asks whether Tuskegee can educate an individual conscience that performs small duties thoroughly even when no audience is watching; the question closes that address’s argument about conscientious responsibility.

Character Building, “Keeping Your Word,” Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington directs the advice to Tuskegee students in the context of promptness and keeping commitments.

Character Building, “What Will Pay?”, Project Gutenberg #60484. Washington reports a discussion of honesty in business and uses conscience as a practical test of conduct; the sentence belongs to that address’s argument that dishonest dealing does not pay.

The Future of the American Negro, Chapter VIII; Project Gutenberg #26507. This short excerpt appears in Washington’s closing policy discussion, where he distinguishes ordinary political cooperation from cases involving a question of right or wrong and advises standing by principle in those cases.

The Future of the American Negro, Chapter III; Project Gutenberg #26507. This is a deliberately short excerpt from Washington’s 1899 argument about becoming a producer as well as a consumer; historical racial context is retained in the source note.

Up from Slavery, Chapter XVI, “Europe,” Project Gutenberg #2376. While discussing Henry O. Tanner and recognition for excellent work, Washington restates his Tuskegee principle that advancement depends on doing useful work so thoroughly that its value becomes difficult to ignore.

Up from Slavery, Chapter XVII, “Last Words,” Project Gutenberg #2376. After recounting Harvard’s invitation to confer an honorary degree, Washington says he values fame only insofar as prominence can be used as an instrument for doing good.

The Simple Life, Chapter V, “Simple Duty,” Mary Louise Hendee translation, Project Gutenberg #23092; the phrase condenses his argument about nearby obligations.

The Simple Life, Chapter V, “Simple Duty,” Mary Louise Hendee translation, Project Gutenberg #23092; the sentence appears in Wagner’s discussion of everyday obligations.

The Simple Life, Chapter V, “Simple Duty,” Mary Louise Hendee translation, Project Gutenberg #23092; Wagner contrasts ordinary duty with inflated moral ambition.

Jane Eyre, Project Gutenberg #1260. Rochester says this to Jane while recounting his own decline. Jane replies that repentance is said to cure remorse; Rochester answers that reformation may be its cure. This is fictional character dialogue, not Charlotte Brontë’s direct psychological advice.

De Officiis, Book II, section 33, Project Gutenberg #47001. Cicero’s larger argument says public confidence depends on practical wisdom joined with justice; intelligence alone is not presented as sufficient for trust.

De Officiis, Book II, section 64; Cicero discusses generosity while also warning against careless management of one’s property.

The Analects of Confucius, Book VII, Chapter XXXVI, James Legge translation, Project Gutenberg #3330.

Ecclesiastes 7:8 in the King James Version; the verse contrasts patient spirit with pride and values the completed end of a matter over the excitement of its beginning.

Ecclesiastes 9:10, King James Version.

Ethan Frome, Chapter VIII, Project Gutenberg #4517. ‘The inexorable facts closed in on him... There was no way out—none’ describes Ethan's perception after he realizes he lacks the money to elope with Mattie. It is tragic fictional narration of despair and constraint, not an objective rule that difficult circumstances have no alternatives or mental-health guidance.

Essays in Medical Sociology, Volume II, Essay I, ‘The Influence of Women in the Profession of Medicine,’ address delivered at the London School of Medicine for Women in October 1889, around printed page 8, Project Gutenberg #69998. Blackwell defines the great object of human life as becoming nobler and helping others while developing her historical argument about women's responsibilities and contribution to medicine. It remains period professional/social-reform rhetoric, not current clinical or professional guidance.

Eighty Years and More (1898), Chapter XIV, “Views on Marriage and Divorce,” Project Gutenberg #11982. This sentence immediately follows Stanton’s individual-sovereignty claim inside her quoted April 1894 Arena article: she contrasts older state/family primacy with the Christian claim of individual conscience and judgment. The passage is historical reform argument, not modern constitutional or family-law doctrine.

Solitude of Self; Stanton uses an imagined solitary-island example to separate a woman’s individual rights from the incidental roles society may assign her.

The Woman’s Bible, Stanton commentary; the line appears in her critique of idealizing women’s self-sacrifice and is preserved in the Project Gutenberg text.

North and South, represented by Project Gutenberg #4276. John Thornton speaks this sentence while recounting family hardship and the disciplined habits his mother taught him; it is historically situated fictional characterization, not Gaskell issuing a universal moral ranking.

Love and Marriage, represented by Project Gutenberg #57592, English edition copyright 1911, translated from Swedish by Arthur G. Chater. The sentence appears in Key’s historical discussion of fidelity, personality and reciprocal development in love; it is early-twentieth-century social philosophy, not relationship therapy.

Discourses of Epictetus, Book II, Chapter XVIII, “How we should struggle against appearances,” George Long translation; 1877 George Bell & Sons witness on Wikisource, cross-checked against Project Gutenberg #10661. This short catalog record is an excerpt of Long’s longer clause “Generally then if you would make any thing a habit, do it”; this collection lightly normalizes “any thing” to “anything.”

Discourses of Epictetus, Book II, Chapter XVIII, “How we should struggle against appearances,” George Long translation; 1877 George Bell & Sons witness on Wikisource, cross-checked against Project Gutenberg #10661. This collection lightly normalizes Long’s “any thing” to “anything”; this longer record contains the shorter retained habit excerpt represented by a separate legacy quote URL.

Letter to Miss H. Bonham Carter [1861], transcribed in Sir Edward Cook, The Life of Florence Nightingale, Vol. I, Project Gutenberg #40057. The sentence follows Nightingale’s account of correcting a hotel cistern failure and represents her own retrospective claim about her working method.

Notes on Hospitals, third edition (1863), Preface / opening requirement. In the represented Google Books copy the sentence is exposed in the front matter as “It may seem a strange principle to enunciate as the very first requirement in a Hospital that it should do the sick no harm.” This remains Nightingale’s nineteenth-century hospital-reform argument and historical professional evidence, not current medical guidance.

Notes on Nursing, represented in Project Gutenberg #17366. This is nineteenth-century nursing theory in Nightingale’s own framework and is retained for historical context, not offered as current medical advice or a substitute for professional care.

Iola Leroy; Or, Shadows Uplifted, represented by Project Gutenberg #12352. Iola says this while declining Dr. Gresham’s marriage proposal and explaining her commitment to serve the Black community after emancipation. It is fictional character speech embedded in Harper’s Reconstruction-era racial and social argument.

The Secret Garden (1911), Chapter XXIII, “Magic.” Immediately after recalling Mary’s encouragement, Colin says that he had to try himself at the same time. The line keeps effort inside the novel’s fictional experiment/Magic rhetoric and is not clinical guidance.

Address to the People of the United States, at a Convention of Colored Men, Louisville, Kentucky, September 1883; “Education” section of Three Addresses (Washington: Gibson Bros., 1886), Project Gutenberg #67919. The printed introduction dates the address September 24. Douglass calls for federal support for universal education during Reconstruction’s aftermath; this is historical policy advocacy, not present-day legal advice.

Self-Made Men lecture, commonly dated to 1872 in edited versions. The compact statement occurs within an argument that values self-dependence while the lecture’s opening explicitly denies that anyone is literally or completely self-made; Library of Congress manuscript materials anchor the source identity and preserve later versions.

Self-Made Men lecture, commonly dated to 1872 in edited versions. Library of Congress preserves undated manuscript, typescript and printed-copy materials, including a later Carlisle version; Douglass delivered and revised the lecture across his speaking career. The lecture also stresses social interdependence, so this line should not be reduced to a simplistic bootstrap claim.

Beyond Good and Evil, aphorism 146, in Helen Zimmern’s public-domain English translation.

Arms and the Man, Act II, Project Gutenberg #3618. Sergius says “A gentleman has no right to hurt a woman under any circumstances” while apologizing after gripping Louka hard enough to bruise her; Louka immediately challenges the adequacy of his apology. The line is fictional dramatic dialogue that exposes contradictions in Sergius’s chivalric self-image rather than a complete legal or relationship rule.

Adam Bede; narrator’s reflection during the novel’s moral development, represented from Project Gutenberg #507.

Daniel Deronda; spoken by Mordecai during his argument about Jewish national renewal, action, memory and a future Judea. The specific speaker and political-religious context are essential.

The Essays of George Eliot, essay VII, ‘Worldliness and Other-Worldliness: The Poet Young,’ around printed page 247, Project Gutenberg #28289. The frozen quote is a clause extracted from Eliot's longer enumeration of virtues grounded in human sympathy—neighbor's rights, participation in others' joys and sorrows, and accepting privation when it benefits others—inside her argument that such morality need not depend directly on belief in a future state. It remains Victorian literary/theological criticism rather than a complete empirical theory of altruism.