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Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Friedrich Schiller

by Philip Yaffe

Part 15 of an occasional series

I am a collector of quotations. I have been ever since I learned how to write, I mean professionally, not in primary school.

I am particularly fond of what I like to call "pithy prose". These short quotations can cover an unlimited variety of subjects: love, religion, politics, human nature, etc. What unites them is their ability to say more in one or two sentences than could be expressed in a thousand-word treatise. It's like being able to pour a liter of liquid into a half-liter bottle.

They are superb examples of Mark Twain's famous dictum, "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

In principle, all writers and public speakers are capable of producing pithy prose, but clearly some are better at it than others.

Any collection of pithy prose must necessarily be biased in terms of what it includes and excludes. I make no apologies for my selections, only for the hundreds of other meritorious quotations I had to leave out.

No one will agree with all these quotations; this was not their intention. You may even find some of them repugnant or outrageous. This was their intention.

We seldom learn anything of value from what we already agree with. Only those ideas that grate on our nerves can open our minds. As with oysters, irritation can produce pearls. So if anything you are about to read annoys or shocks you, try to think clearly and dispassionately about what it is saying. You will either be confirmed in your current belief or shaken into re-examining it.

Either way, you win!

This article is part of an occasional series. In each article, I will be offering more amusing, educating, and exasperating quotations to your judgment. But just to be certain that we agree on what we are talking about, here it is in a nutshell.

Pithy Prose: A quotation where at first you may not be quite certain what it means. But when you become certain, you become equally certain that it couldn't have been said better any other way. In short, big ideas in small packages.

If you have a better definition of pithy prose, please contact me. I would love to hear it.

Who Is Friedrich Schiller?

Johann Christoph Friedrich Schiller (1759 – 1805) was a major German dramatist, poet, and essayist. Influenced by the philosophy of Emmanuel Kant, he developed his esthetic theories, stressing the sublime and the creative powers of humanity. His poem "Ode to Joy" (1785) was used by Ludwig van Beethoven in the final movement of his "Ninth Symphony" (1824). Today, "Ode to Joy" is the stirring anthem of the 27-nation European Union.

1. A merely fallen enemy may rise again, but the reconciled one is truly vanquished.

2. A noble heart will always capitulate to reason.

3. Be noble minded! Our own heart, and not other men's opinions of us, forms our true honor.

7.    Dare to err and to dream. Deep meaning often lies in childish plays.

8.    Disappointments are to the soul what a thunderstorm is to the air.

9.    Every true genius is bound to be naive.

10.  Grace is the beauty of form under the influence of freedom.

11.  Great souls suffer in silence.

12.  Happy he who learns to bear what he cannot change.

13.  He who considers too much will perform little.

14.  He who has done his best for his own time has lived for all times.

15.  It hinders the creative work of the mind if the intellect examines too closely the ideas as they pour in.

16.  It is criminal to steal a purse, daring to steal a fortune, a mark of greatness to steal a crown. The blame diminishes as the guilt increases.

17.  It is difficult to discriminate the voice of truth from amid the clamor raised by heated partisans.

18.  It is easy to give advice from a port of safety.

19.  It is often wise to reveal that which cannot be concealed for long.

20.  Live with your century, but do not be its creature.

21.  Lose not yourself in a far off time, seize the moment that is thine.

22.  Man only plays when in the full meaning of the word he is a man, and he is only completely a man when he plays.

23.  Mankind is made great or little by its own will.

24.  No emperor has the power to dictate to the heart.

25.  Nothing leads to good that is not natural.

26.  Opposition always inflames the enthusiast, never converts him.

27.  Peace is rarely denied to the peaceful.

28.  Power is the most persuasive rhetoric.

29.  That which is as universal as death must be a benefit.

30.  The jest loses its point when he who makes it is the first to laugh.

31.  The strong man is strongest when alone.

32.  The voice of the majority is no proof of justice.

33.  There is room in the smallest cottage for a happy loving pair.

34.  They would need to be already wise in order to love wisdom.

35.  To gain a crown by fighting is great, to reject it divine.

36.  To save all we must risk all.

37.  Who dares nothing, need hope for nothing.

38.  Will it, and set to work briskly.

39.  Worthless is the nation that does not gladly stake its all on its honor.

Previously in this series

Part 1:    Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Mark Twain

Part 2:    Pithy Prose: The Wit & Wisdom of Oscar Wilde

Part 3:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of People Named "W"

Part 4:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Anatole France

Part 5:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Ambrose Bierce

Part 6:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Friedrich Nietzsche

Part 7:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Anon

Part 8:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of People Named "H"

Part 9:    Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Johann Goethe

Part 10:  Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Eric Hoffer

Part 11:  Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Blaise Pascal

Part 12:  Pithy Prose:  The Wit & Wisdom of Robert Frost

Part 13:  More Wit & Wisdom of Anon

Part 14:  The Wit & Wisdom of Elbert Hubbard

Philip Yaffe is a former reporter/feature writer with The Wall Street Journal and a marketing communication consultant. He currently teaches a course in good writing and good speaking in Brussels, Belgium. His recently published book In the “I” of the Storm: the Simple Secrets of Writing & Speaking (Almost) like a Professional is available from Story Publishers in Ghent, Belgium (storypublishers.be) and Amazon (amazon.com).

For further information, contact:

Philip Yaffe

Brussels, Belgium

Tel:        +32 (0)2 660 0405

Email:    phil.yaffe@yahoo.com,phil.yaffe@gmail.com

About the Author

Philip Yaffe is a former writer with The Wall Street Journal and international marketing communication consultant. Now semi-retired, he teaches courses in persuasive communication in Brussels, Belgium. Because his clients use English as a second or third language, his approach to writing and public speaking is somewhat different from other communication coaches. He is the author of In the “I” of the Storm: the Simple Secrets of Writing & Speaking (Almost) like a Professional. Contact: phil.yaffe@yahoo.com.

How do you rate these classical composers?

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Ludwig van Beethoven
Johann Sebastian Bach
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi
Niccolò Paganini
Richard Wagner
Camille Saint-Saëns
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Aram Khachaturian
Philip Glass
Claude Debussy
Joseph Haydn
John Towner Williams
Yanni(this is a joke)

From 1-15, 15 being the highest

I'm not sure what you mean...

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, 15
Ludwig van Beethoven, 14
Johann Sebastian Bach, 15
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, 13
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, 15
Niccolò Paganini, 13
Richard Wagner, 15
Camille Saint-Saëns, 15
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, 13
Aram Khachaturian, 12
Philip Glass, 0
Claude Debussy, 14
Joseph Haydn, 15
John Towner Williams, 0
Yanni(this is a joke) 0

Or, If you wanted it this way... This is in the order of most I'd want to listen to...

15) Camille Saint-Saëns
14) Richard Wagner
13) Joseph Haydn
12) Ludwig van Beethoven
11) Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
10) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
9) Johann Sebastian Bach
Niccolò Paganini
7) Antonio Lucio Vivaldi
6) Claude Debussy
5) Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
4) Aram Khachaturian
-3) Philip Glass
-4) John Towner Williams
-5) Yanni

Strange list...

Beethoven Symphony No. 5 Bass Excerpt (Trio) - Jason Scott Phillips