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Herman Melville Quotes - Page 10

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For the profit of travel: in the first place, you get rid of a few prejudices.... The prejudiced against color finds several hundred millions of people of all shades of color, and all degrees of intellect, rank, and

For the profit of travel: in the first place, you get rid of a few prejudices.... The prejudiced against color finds several hundred millions of people of all shades of color, and all degrees of intellect, rank, and social worth, generals, judges, priests, and kings, and learns to give up his foolish prejudice.

Herman Melville
Travel, Kings, Giving Up
Herman Melville, Harrison Hayford, G. Thomas Tanselle (1987). “Piazza Tales and Other Prose Pieces, 1839-1860: Volume Nine, Scholarly Edition”, p.422, Northwestern University Press

What man who carries a heavenly soul in him, has not groaned to perceive, that unless he committed a sort of suicide as to the practical things of this world, he never can hope to regulate his earthly conduct by that same heavenly soul?

Herman Melville
Suicide, Men, Soul
Herman Melville (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Herman Melville (Illustrated)”, p.2511, Delphi Classics

When a companion's heart of itself overflows, the best one can do is to do nothing.

Herman Melville
Heart, Emotion, Companionship
Herman Melville, Harrison Hayford, G. Thomas Tanselle (1987). “Piazza Tales and Other Prose Pieces, 1839-1860: Volume Nine, Scholarly Edition”, p.295, Northwestern University Press

The terrors of truth and dart of death To faith alike are vain.

Herman Melville
Faith, Vain, Terror
Herman Melville (1866). “Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War”, p.15

He who goes oftenest round Cape Horn goes the most circumspectly.

Herman Melville
Capes, Danger, Horns

Zeal is not of necessity religion, neither is it always of the same essence with poetry or patriotism.

Herman Melville
Essence, Zeal
Herman Melville, Robert C. Ryan, Hershel Parker (2009). “Published Poems: The Writings of Herman Melville”, p.183, Northwestern University Press

The sea had jeeringly kept his finite body up, but drowned the infinite of his soul.

Herman Melville
Sea, Soul, Body
Herman Melville (1892). “Moby Dick”, p.391

Until we understand that our grief outweighs a thousand joys, we will never understand what Christianity is all about.

Herman Melville
Grief, Joy, Suffering

Stripped of the cunning artifices of the tailor, and standing forth in the garb of Eden - what a sorry set of round-shouldered, spindle-shanked, crane-necked varlets would civilized men appear!

Herman Melville
Sorry, Men, Eden
Herman Melville (2013). “Delphi Complete Works of Herman Melville (Illustrated)”, p.175, Delphi Classics

In some things, we Americans leave to other countries the carrying out of the principle that stands at the head of our Declaration of Independence.

Herman Melville
Country, Independence, Principles
Herman Melville (2015). “Redburn's First Voyage: Works of Melville”, p.170, 谷月社

The profound calm which only apparently precedes and prophesies of the storm, is perhaps more awful than the storm itself; for indeed, the calm is but the wrapper and envelop of the storm, and contains it in itself, as the seemingly harmless rifle holds the fatal powder, and the ball, and the explosion.

Herman Melville
Profound, Storm, Rifles
Herman Melville (2017). “HERMAN MELVILLE – Premium Collection: 24 Novels & Novellas; With 140+ Poems & Essays: Adventure Classics, Sea Tales & Philosophical Novels, Including Moby-Dick, Typee, Omoo, Bartleby the Scrivener, Benito Cereno, Mardi, Redburn, White-Jacket, Pierre, Israel Potter, The Confidence-Man…”, p.1796, e-artnow

However baby man may brag of his science and skill, and however much, in a flattering future, that science and skill may augment; yet for ever and for ever, to the crack of doom, the sea will insult and murder him, and pulverize the stateliest, stiffest frigate he can make; nevertheless, by the continual repetition of these very impressions, man has lost that sense of the full awfulness of the sea which aboriginally belongs to it.

Herman Melville
Baby, Men, Sea
Herman Melville (2016). “Moby Dick (World Classics, Unabridged)”, p.190, Vij Books India Pvt Ltd

To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee.

Herman Melville
Life And Love, Hate, Heart
Moby Dick ch. 135 (1851)

How it is I know not; but there is no place like a bed for confidential disclosures between friends. Man and wife, they say, there open the very bottom of their souls to each other; and some old couples often lie and chat over old times till nearly morning. Thus, then, in our hearts' honeymoon, lay I and Queequeg - a cosy, loving pair.

Herman Melville
Morning, Couple, Lying
Herman Melville (2008). “Moby-Dick”, p.58, Velvet Element Books

There is a wisdom that is woe; but there is a woe that is madness. And there is a Catskill eagle in some souls that can alike dive down into the blackest gorges, and soar out of them again and become invisible in the sunny spaces. And even if he for ever flies within the gorge, that gorge is in the mountains; so that even in his lowest swoop the mountain eagle is still higher than other birds upon the plain, even though they soar.

Herman Melville
Inspirational, Eagles, Space
Herman Melville (2008). “Moby-Dick”, p.473, Velvet Element Books

Bachelors alone can travel freely, and without any twinges of their consciences touching desertion of the fire-side.

Herman Melville
Travel, Fire, Touching
Herman Melville (2016). “Billy Budd, Bartleby, and Other Stories”, p.148, Penguin

truly to enjoy bodily warmth, some small part of you must be cold, for there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast. Nothing exists in itself. If you flatter yourself that you are all over comfortable, and have been so a long time, then you cannot be said to be comfortable any more.

Herman Melville
Long, Quality, World
Herman Melville (2006). “Moby Dick, the Whale: Easyread Comfort Edition”, p.87, ReadHowYouWant.com

Talk not to me of blasphemy, man; I'd strike the sun if it insulted me.

Herman Melville
Men, Doubt, Atheism
Herman Melville (2008). “Moby-Dick”, p.181, Velvet Element Books

A noble craft, but somehow a most melancholy! All noble things are touched with that.

Herman Melville
Noble, Crafts, Melancholy
Herman Melville (2008). “Moby-Dick”, p.77, Velvet Element Books

He seemed to take to me quite as naturally and unbiddenly as I to him; and when our smoke was over, he pressed his forehead against mine, clasped me round the waist, and said that henceforth we were married.

Herman Melville
Married, Said, Foreheads
"Moby Dick".

If some books are deemed most baneful and their sale forbid, how then with deadlier facts, not dreams of doting men? Those whom books will hurt will not be proof against events. Events, not books should be forbid.

Herman Melville
Dream, Hurt, Fear
1854 'The Encantadas, Sketch Eighth', in Putnam's Monthly Magazine, May.

He who is ready to despair in solitary peril, plucks up a heart in the presence of another. In a plurality of comrades is much countenance and consolation.

Herman Melville
Courage, Heart, Despair
Herman Melville (1849). “Mardi: And a Voyage Thither”, p.132

There is a touch of divinity even in brutes, and a special halo about a horse, that should forever exempt him from indignities.

Herman Melville
Horse, Forever, Special
Herman Melville (2016). “Redburn.His First Voyage”, p.222, Herman Melville

He says NO! In thunder; but the Devil himself cannot make him say yes.

Herman Melville
Devil, Baggage, Thunder
1851 Of Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Charity, like poetry, should be cultivated, if only for its being graceful.

Herman Melville
Poetry, Grace, Charity
Herman Melville (2016). “The Confidence-Man”, p.154, Open Road Media

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