{"id":595,"date":"2015-11-15T02:50:30","date_gmt":"2015-11-15T02:50:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/repeatright.com\/engine\/?p=595"},"modified":"2018-10-08T19:16:00","modified_gmt":"2018-10-08T19:16:00","slug":"alcott-amos-bronson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.repeatright.com\/engine\/alcott-amos-bronson\/","title":{"rendered":"ALCOTT, Amos Bronson"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453315804311{margin-top: -40px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531588223-e020d87d-f7dd094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cAs we grow old, the beauty steals inward.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Cited by friend Ralph Waldo Emerson in a journal entry (March 1845) in Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson<\/em>, Vol. VII [1845-1848], eds. Edward Waldo Emerson & Waldo Emerson Forbes, Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1912, p. 26; online via Cornell University Library & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misattribution” tab_id=”1449531589281-1a7ccd5f-aa59094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Misattribution note<\/em><\/span><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

Many sources incorrectly attribute the quote “As we grow old, the beauty steals inward<\/span>” to Ralph Waldo Emerson<\/strong><\/span> \u2013 though Emerson himself clearly credited Amos Bronson Alcott for the verse.<\/p>\n

Emerson<\/span> & Alcott <\/span>were neighbors and good friends, and Emerson described his fellow author-philosopher as \u201cthe most refined and advanced soul we have had in New England, who makes all other souls appear slow and cheap and mechanical.\u201d (Emerson, Journal entry, Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson<\/em>, Vol. VIII [1849-1855] pp. 362-363)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531588755-96303790-852e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Attribution and quote appear as a single line in Emerson\u2019s journal]:<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we grow old,\u201d said Alcott, \u201cthe beauty steals inward.\u201d (p. 26)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Link” tab_id=”1449531589797-29580b31-8c50094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Journals of Ralph Waldo Emerson<\/em>, Vol. VII (1912 Houghton Mifflin) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/cu31924021990258#page\/n59\/mode\/2up\/search\/beauty+steals<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315829087-ce67c619-0fbcbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cEducation may work wonders as well in warping the genius of individuals as in seconding it, and civilization degrade the many to exalt the few.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 47; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misquotes” tab_id=”1453315829287-33b1178b-1c81bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Misquote note<\/em><\/span>: Some sources quote only the second half of Alcott\u2019s sentence, usually with a change from the word \u2018degrade\u2019 to \u2018degrades\u2019: \u201cCivilization degrades the many to exalt the few<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Please note, however, that the meaning<\/u> of the sentence is changed when viewed as a whole, and in the context of Alcott\u2019s \u2018Callings\u2019 remarks: \u201cEducation may work wonders as well in warping the genius of individuals as in seconding it, and civilization degrade the many to exalt the few<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315829475-7c82a017-1e62bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part III (\u2018Pursuits\u2019), section title \u2018Callings\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cNecessity may balk the following his destined employment, and life be wasted in the effort to live. Education may work wonders as well in warping the genius of individuals as in seconding it, and civilization degrade the many to exalt the few. But the sense of degradation is strong in noble natures, and asserts itself with an emphasis unmistakable. It behooves communities to furnish suitable employment for all its members, or else recreation and amusement. Man must have some recognized stake in society and affairs to knit him lovingly to his kind, or he is wont to revenge himself for wrongs real or imagined.\u201d (pp. 47-48)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1453315829682-63e8fade-cf4cbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive:\u00a0https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n66\/mode\/2up\/search\/degrade+the+many+to+exalt+the+few<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cFine manners are the mantle of fair minds.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Tablets <\/em>(1868) Boston, MA: Roberts Brothers, 1868, Book III, p.72; online via Boston Public Library & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misattribution” tab_id=”1453315828190-b4d7b461-d58dbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Misattribution note<\/em><\/span><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

Immediately following the publication of Alcott’s Tablets,<\/em> most sources did correctly attribute the “fine manners” quote to Amos Bronson (A.B.) Alcott…but not long after that, newspapers & magazines jumped the attribution tracks and came up with a number of not-quite-right citations, including: W.A. Alcott<\/strong><\/span>, L. Alcott<\/strong><\/span>, A. Ascott<\/strong><\/span>, or just plain \u2018Alcott<\/strong><\/span>.\u2019<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Essay \u2013 Book III, section I, \u2018Hospitality\u2019]:<\/p>\n

\u201cModesty is bred of self-reverence. Fine manners are the mantle of fair minds. None are truly great without this ornament.\u201d (p. 72)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Tablets <\/em>(1868) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tablets00alco#page\/72\/mode\/2up\/search\/fine+manners<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cMemory marks the horizon of our consciousness, imagination its zenith.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book II, p. 177; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]<\/span><\/p>\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction book of short essays. Book II, part V (\u2018Immortality\u2019), section title \u2018Sleep\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe more of sleep the more of retrospect, the more of wakefulness the more of prospect. Memory marks the horizon of our consciousness, imagination its zenith. Before the heavens thou art, and shall survive their decay.\u201d<\/p>\n

(p. 177)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive:\u00a0https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n195\/mode\/2up\/search\/memory+marks<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cOne must be a wise reader to quote wisely and well.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 8; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part I (\u2018Learning\u2019), section title \u2018Quotation\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cOne must be a wise reader to quote wisely and well. And then what service is rendered his reader by advertising him where the good things are, besides the modesty of the practice. An author should esteem himself honored in his wisely quoted sentences; his fame is published the more widely as the volume circulates and is read.\u201d (pp. 8-9)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n26\/mode\/2up\/search\/wise+reader <\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cOur bravest lessons are not learned through success, but through misadventure.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 45; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]<\/span><\/p>\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part III (\u2018Pursuits\u2019), section title \u2018Misfortune\u2019. Capitalization as it appears in cited text.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cOur bravest lessons are not learned through success but misadventure, the best soldiers being drilled by Necessity, serving their time under the discipline of Fate; only one must be equal to Destiny and measure his strength with hers in open encounter. The faithful are sure to win in the end. They come forth the stronger through disaster not less than success.\u201d (p. 45)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: <\/em>Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n62\/mode\/2up\/search\/our+bravest<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cOur ideals are our better selves.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 77; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part V (\u2018Habits\u2019), section title \u2018Friendship\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIdeals are possibilities, and persons handsomest viewed by the mind\u2019s eye, as beautiful estates seen in the distance. Such is the charm of the perspective. But the moment we covet them as ours and ours only, their glory departs, the beauty fades, and they are worthless in our eyes, robbed of all that made them so desirable to us. Paradise is too delightful to be enjoyed out of the mind. How else were friendship possible? Our ideals are our better selves.\u201d (p. 77)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0<\/em>Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n94\/mode\/2up\/search\/our+ideals<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cStrengthen me by sympathizing with my strength, not my weakness.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book II, p. 169; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]<\/span><\/p>\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction book of short essays. Book II, part IV (\u2018The Lapse\u2019), section title \u2018Sympathy\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cStrengthen me by sympathizing with my strength, not my weakness. I fall readily enough without help from any one. Can you assist me to rise? It may need all your strength, all mine, and more \u2013 the Super-natural assistance, which is never withheld from any seeking humbly its succors. And this is what I crave, most need, – the helpful service, the sympathy that revives and consoles.\u201d (p. 169)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n186\/mode\/2up\/search\/strengthen+me<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cThat is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 5; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part I (\u2018Learning\u2019), section title \u2018Books\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cOne cannot celebrate books sufficiently. After saying his best, still something better remains to be spoken in their praise. As with friends, one finds new beauties at every interview, and would stay long in the presence of those choice companions. As with friends, he may dispense with a wide acquaintance. Few and choice. The richest minds need not large libraries. That is a good book which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.\u201d (p. 5)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n22\/mode\/2up\/search\/closed+with+profit<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cThe less routine, the more life.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 70; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]<\/span><\/p>\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part V (\u2018Habits\u2019), section title \u2018Exercise\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhose tasks delight him cancels melancholy, ennui; day by day he enacts the commandments anew. Whatsoever stirs the stagnant currents, setting these flowing in wholesome directions, promotes brisk spirits and productive thinking. The less routine, the more of life.\u201d (p. 70)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

 <\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n88\/mode\/2up\/search\/routine<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cThe true teacher defends his pupils against his own personal influence. He inspires self-trust.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Cited in \u201cOrphic Sayings\u201d (January 1841) The Dial<\/em>, Vol. I, No. III; in volume The Dial: A Magazine for Literature, Philosophy, and Religion<\/em>, Vol. I [July 1840 \u2013 April 1841], eds. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller & George Ripley, Boston: Weeks, Jordan & Co., 1841, p. 357; online via Harvard University & Google Books, books.google.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Re-quote Note” tab_id=”1449531589281-1a7ccd5f-aa59094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Re-quote note<\/em><\/span>:<\/p>\n

Many of Alcott\u2019s quotes from The Dial<\/em> were reprinted in an August 1864 Fraser\u2019s<\/em> magazine article \u201cThe Transcendentalists of Concord.\u201d The article was subsequently picked up and reprinted in popular magazines The Eclectic<\/em> and Littell\u2019s The Living Age<\/em> in October 1864.<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Item LXXX, \u201cTeacher\u201d]: \u201cThe true teacher defends his pupils against his own personal influence. He inspires self-trust. He guides their eyes from himself to the spirit that quickens him. He will have no disciples. A noble artist, he has visions of excellence and revelations of beauty, which he has neither impersonated in character, nor embodied in words. His life and teachings are but studies for yet nobler ideals.\u201d (p. 357)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

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Source link<\/strong>:\u00a0<\/em>[Re-quote note]<\/span>: \u201cThe Transcendentalists of Concord\u201d (August 1864) online via Google Books: https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=G2DPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA255&dq=The+true+teacher+defends+his+pupils<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link<\/strong><\/span>:\u00a0<\/em>\u201cOrphic Sayings\u201d (January 1841) Dial Magazine, online via Google Books:\u00a0https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=-ukAAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA357&dq=The+true+teacher+defends+his+pupils<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cTime is the best critic.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book I, p. 10; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]<\/span><\/p>\n

Extended excerpt <\/em><\/strong>[Non-fiction book of short essays. Book I, part I (\u2018Learning\u2019), section title \u2018Criticism\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cTime is the best critic, tolerates not an infirmity, holds us fast to the canons of truth and of good taste. Time is one\u2019s best friend, teaching best of all the wisdom of silence.\u201d (p. 10)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf63bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

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Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) online via Internet Archive: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n28\/mode\/2up\/search\/best+critic<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1ebfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

\u201cTruth is the cry of all, but the game of the few.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong>, American author, educator & social reformer<\/p>\n

Table-Talk <\/em>(1877) Boston, MA: Roberts Bros., 1877, Book II, p. 127; online via Google & Internet Archive, www.archive.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bfbfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

Extended excerpt\u00a0<\/em><\/strong> [Non-fiction book of short essays. Book II, part I (\u2018Method\u2019), section title \u2018Index\u2019.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe eye by long use comes to see even in the darkest caverns, and there is no subject so obscure that we may not discover some glimpse of truth by long poring over it. Truth is the cry of all, but the game of the few.\u201d (p. 127)<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source Link” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e0bfbc-d866″][vc_column_text]\n

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Source link<\/strong><\/span>: Table-Talk<\/em> (1877) online via Internet Archive:\u00a0https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/tabletalk00alcogoog#page\/n145\/mode\/2up\/search\/game+of+the+few<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n

Resources<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=”none” el_class=”Wrapper-Author-Resources”]Learn more about Amos Bronson Alcott<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0| Here are some good places to find out more –<\/p>\n