The Endeavour Quotes

Criticism is the endeavour to find, to know, to love, to recommend, not only the best, but all the good, that has been known and thought and written in the world. ~ George Saintsbury

As for what motivated me, it is quite simple; I would hope that in the eyes of some people it might be sufficient in itself. It was curiosity – the only kind of curiosity, in any case, that is worth acting upon with a degree of obstinacy: not the curiosity that seeks to assimilate what it is proper for one to know, but that which enables one to get free of oneself. After all, what would be the value of the passion for knowledge if it resulted only in a certain amount of knowledgeableness and not, in one way or another and to the extent possible, in the knower's straying afield of himself? There are times in life when the question of knowing if one can think differently that one thinks, and perceive differently than one sees, is absolutely necessary if one is to go on looking and reflecting at all. People will say, perhaps, that these games with oneself would better be left backstage; or, at best, that they might properly form part of those preliminary exercises that are forgotten once they have served their purpose. But, then, what is philosophy today – philosophical activity, I mean – if it is not the critical work that thought brings to bear on itself? In what does it consist, if not in the endeavour to know how and to what extent it might be possible to think differently, instead of legitimating what is already known? ~ Michel Foucault

But on the whole, though I never arrived at the perfection I had been so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the endeavour, a better and happier man than I otherwise should have been had I not attempted it; as those who aim at perfect writing by imitating the engraved copies, their hand is mended by the endevour, and is tolerable while it continues fair and legible ~ Benjamin Franklin

Culture is the endeavour to know the best and to make this knowledge prevail for the good of all humankind. ~ Matthew Arnold

Captain James Cook's ship, The Endeavour, hit a coral outcrop in the Great Barrier Reef in 1770. Cook and his crew camped in what is now called Cooktown for nearly two months while making repairs. Then they sailed south, where Cook claimed the east coast of Australia as British territory. ~ Julie Murphy

Man is not at peace with himself till he has become like unto God. The endeavour to reach this state is the supreme, the only ambition worth having. And this is self-realization. ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Speculative Philosophy is the endeavour to frame a coherent, logical, necessary system of general ideas in terms of which every element of our experience can be interpreted. By this notion of 'interpretation' I mean that everything of which we are conscious, as enjoyed, perceived, willed, or thought, shall have the character of a particular instance of the general scheme. ~ Charles Hartshorne

MIND, n. A mysterious form of matter secreted by the brain. Its chief activity consists in the endeavour to ascertain its own nature, the futility of the attempt being due to the fact that it has nothing but itself to know itself with. ~ Ambrose Bierce

Elegance? It may seem odd to non-scientists, but there is an aesthetic in software as there is in every other area of intellectual endeavour. Truly great programmers are like great poets or great mathematicians - they can achieve in a few lines what lesser mortals can only approach in three volumes ~ John Naughton

Those authors who would find many readers, must endeavour to please while they instruct. ~ Samuel Johnson

It makes him contemptible to be considered fickle, frivolous, effeminate, mean-spirited, irresolute, from all of which a prince should guard himself as from a rock; and he should endeavour to show in his actions greatness, courage, gravity, and fortitude; and in his private dealings with his subjects let him show that his judgments are irrevocable, and maintain himself in such reputation that no one can hope either to deceive him or to get round him. ~ Niccolo Machiavelli

Life is enduring endeavour ~ Lailah Gifty Akita

Preoccupy your mind more and more thinking of strategies, methods of attaining possession in all areas of your life's endeavour. ~ Sunday Adelaja

Any film, or to me any creative endeavour, no matter who you're working with, is, in many cases, a wonderful experience. ~ Martin Scorsese

Nurturing self-confidence is a daily endeavour. ~ Lailah Gifty Akita

Let us not fear our wild thoughts for they can give rise to wondrous contemplation, creative endeavour, life changing ideas, momentous bliss. ~ Jay Woodman

Battles over job and career, over every picture published. She had never been ambitious out of vanity. All she ever wanted was to escape from her mother's world. Yes, she saw it with absolute clarity: no matter how enthusiastic she was about taking pictures, she could just as easily have turned her enthusiasm to any other endeavour. Photography was nothing but a way of getting at 'something higher' and living beside Thomas. ~ Milan Kundera

We cannot without depraving our minds endeavour to please a lover or husband but in proportion as he pleases us. ~ Mary Shelley

It seems as if an age of genius must be succeeded by an age of endeavour; riot and extravagance by cleanliness and hard work. ~ Virginia Woolf

All things in common nature should produce
Without sweat or endeavour. Treason, felony,
Sword, pike, knife, gun, or need of any engine,
Would I not have; but nature should bring forth,
Of it own kind, all foison, all abundance,
To feed my innocent people. ~ William Shakespeare

[D]eath serves as a sobering reminder of our limited time on this Earth, thereby compelling us to endeavour to leave behind not insipid, uninspiring lives, but rather true manifestations of our ideas in their tangible forms, whose permanence can far outlive our own. ~ Agnes Chew

Tackling climate change is a collective endeavour, it means collective accountability and it's not too late ~ Christine Lagarde

Beautiful look at me. If you accept me as your man, you will not be an object nor will I take you for granted. I will endeavour to love you whole-heartedly with no hesitation, keeping you safe at all times. ~ NDR.JNR

Movies are collective, cooperative endeavours, which I like a lot. But writing is all up to you, it's what's so scary; it's just you and that page. But I really like it a lot. ~ Jane Fonda

Endeavour to play easy pieces well and with elegance; that is better than to play difficult pieces badly. ~ Robert Schumann

Creative Endeavour lost her wings, Mrs Ape. ~ Evelyn Waugh

There is something mysteriously powerful that can happen when young, inchoate minds come into contact with older and more worldly ones in a spirit of intellectual and creative endeavour - if I believed in progress, I suppose that's what I'd call it. ~ Will Self

Every man should take up his own ideal and endeavour to accomplish it. That is a surer way of progress than taking up other men's ideals, which he can never hope to accomplish. ~ Swami Vivekananda

Having some foundation for believing, by this time, that nature and accident had made me an author, I pursued my vocation with confidence. Without such assurance I should certainly have left it alone and bestowed my energy on some other endeavour. I should have tried to find out what nature and accident really had made me, and to be that, and nothing else. ~ Charles Dickens

I think for most people it's hard to understand what it is about swimming - I mean it's such a solo endeavour. ~ Stephanie Rice

First, Resolve upon, and daily endeavour to practise, a life of seriousness and strict sobriety. ~ David Brainerd

And I endeavour to subdue circumstances to myself, and not myself to circumstances.
[Lat., Et mihi res, non me rebus, subjungere conor.] ~ Horace

War knows no power. Safe shall be my going,
Secretly armed against all death's endeavour;
Safe though all safety's lost; safe where men fall;
And if these poor limbs die, safest of all. ~ Rupert Brooke

I'm attempting to broaden my novels' scope through landscape and weather, leaves falling off trees, overnight storms, timeless elements which, irrespective of human endeavour, have always been there and, as long as there is life and snow, will always be there. ~ Kent Haruf

We naturally crave increase in all our endeavours ~ Sunday Adelaja

I am an honest man by nature, but as I live in society I try not to arouse anyone's resentment and sometimes I am compelled to lie in this endeavour. As soon as honesty becomes compatible with daily social life, I will stop telling such lies. ~ Soseki Natsume

Too narrow a definition tends to complicate any endeavour. ~ Steven Redhead

Self-understanding is a lifetime endeavour. It is not a weekend seminar. It does not come in capsule form. ~ Vironika Tugaleva

Japanese staff who claim not to know a word of English beyond "awesome" and "sucks", which for a vast range of human endeavour, actually, is more than enough ... ~ Thomas Pynchon

That which I might endeavour to find in other ways seeks me incessantly and gives itself to me through all creatures. ~ Jean-Pierre De Caussade

We should only endeavour to think and speak correctly ourselves, without wishing to bring others over to our taste and opinions. ~ Jean De La Bruyere

As every flower fades and as all youth departs, so life at every stage, so every virtue, so our grasp of truth blooms in its day and may not last forever. Since life may summon us at every age, be ready, heart, for parting, new endeavour, be ready bravely and without remorse to find new light that old ties cannot give. In all beginnings dwells a magic force for guarding us and helping us to live. ~ Hermann Hesse

Poets themselves, tho' liars by profession, always endeavour to give an air of truth to their fictions ... ~ David Hume

It is but one side of a Christian to endeavour to do what pleases God; you must as well endeavour to be pleased with what God does. ~ Jeremiah Burroughs

We all know writing is a reclusive, lonely endeavour. It just is. But nobody writes alone. ~ Iain Reid

Discipline is required in all human endeavours. ~ Sunday Adelaja

Be that as it may, it is here that Le Chiffre will, we are confident, endeavour on or after 15 June to make a profit at baccarat of fifty million francs on a working capital of twenty-five million. (And, incidentally, save his life.) ~ Ian Fleming

All is not done when we have spoken to God by prayer; our petitions are to be pursued with real endeavours. ~ Benjamin Whichcote

Excellent friend! how sincerely did you love me, and endeavour to elevate my mind until it was on a level with your own. ~ Mary Shelley