Eric Hoffer Quotes

A collection of quotes by Eric Hoffer.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) was an American social philosopher and longshoreman who gained recognition for his insightful writings on mass movements and the human nature of obedience and political fanaticism. Born in New York City to immigrant parents, Hoffer grew up in poverty and experienced a tumultuous early life, working in various manual jobs before eventually joining the International Longshoremen's Association, where he worked as a dockworker for over twenty-five years.

Despite his lack of formal education, Hoffer was a prolific writer and self-taught intellectual. He published his first book, "The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements," in 1951, which explored the psychological and social dynamics behind individuals' inclination towards joining extremist groups or mass movements. This seminal work brought him critical acclaim and established him as a respected commentator on the human condition.

Throughout his career, Hoffer penned several other influential books, including "The Ordeal of Change," "The Passionate State of Mind," and "Working and Thinking on the Waterfront." His writings were characterized by their accessible style, drawing on personal anecdotes and observations to provide insight into the complexities of human behavior and the underlying forces that shape society.

Eric Hoffer's unique perspective and profound observations earned him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1983, shortly before his death. His contributions to social philosophy continue to be widely studied and appreciated, shedding light on the psychological and sociological aspects of mass movements and the influence they have on individuals and societies.

The pleasure we derive from doing favors is partly in the fe

The pleasure we derive from doing favors is partly in the feeling it gives us that we are not altogether worthless. It is a pleasant surprise to ourselves.

Kindness

Absolute faith corrupts as absolutely as absolute power.

Absolute faith corrupts as absolutely as absolute power.

Faith

Men weary as much of not doing the things they want to do as

Men weary as much of not doing the things they want to do as of doing the things they do not want to do.

Work

However much we guard ourselves against it, we tend to shape

However much we guard ourselves against it, we tend to shape ourselves in the image others have of us. It is not so much the example of others we imitate, as the reflection of ourselves in their eyes and the echo of ourselves in their words.

Friends

It is often the failure who is the pioneer in new lands, new

It is often the failure who is the pioneer in new lands, new undertakings, and new forms of expression.

Failure

There is no loneliness greater than the loneliness of a fail

There is no loneliness greater than the loneliness of a failure. The failure is a stranger in his own house.

Failure

How much easier is self-sacrifice than self-realization!

How much easier is self-sacrifice than self-realization!

Retribution often means that we eventually do to ourselves w

Retribution often means that we eventually do to ourselves what we have done unto others.

Nonconformists travel as a rule in bunches. You rarely find

Nonconformists travel as a rule in bunches. You rarely find a nonconformist who goes it alone. And woe to him inside a nonconformist clique who does not conform with nonconformity.

Conformity & Nonconformity

Our credulity is greatest concerning the things we know leas

Our credulity is greatest concerning the things we know least about. And since we know least about ourselves, we are ready to believe all that is said about us. Hence the mysterious power of both flattery and calumny.

Belief

There is a totalitarian regime inside every one of us. We ar

There is a totalitarian regime inside every one of us. We are ruled by a ruthless politburo which sets our norms and drives us from one five-year plan to another. The autonomous individual who has to justify his existence by his own efforts is in eternal bondage to himself.

Tyranny

The wisdom of others remains dull till it is writ over with

The wisdom of others remains dull till it is writ over with our own blood. We are essentially apart from the world; it bursts into our consciousness only when it sinks its teeth and nails into us.

Wisdom

Perhaps a modern society can remain stable only by eliminati

Perhaps a modern society can remain stable only by eliminating adolescence, by giving its young, from the age of ten, the skills, responsibilities, and rewards of grownups, and opportunities for action in all spheres of life. Adolescence should be a time of useful action, while book learning and scholarship should be a preoccupation of adults.

Youth

Youth itself is a talent -- a perishable talent.

Youth itself is a talent -- a perishable talent.

Youth

When cowardice is made respectable, its followers are withou

When cowardice is made respectable, its followers are without number both from among the weak and the strong; it easily becomes a fashion.

Cowardice/weakness

How frighteningly few are the persons whose death would spoi

How frighteningly few are the persons whose death would spoil our appetite and make the world seem empty.

Death

Death has but one terror, that it has no tomorrow.

Death has but one terror, that it has no tomorrow.

Death

What greater reassurance can the weak have than that they ar

What greater reassurance can the weak have than that they are like anyone else?

Tradition

Compassion is the antitoxin of the soul: where there is comp

Compassion is the antitoxin of the soul: where there is compassion even the most poisonous impulses remain relatively harmless.

Kindness

It is a talent of the weak to persuade themselves that they

It is a talent of the weak to persuade themselves that they suffer for something when they suffer from something; that they are showing the way when they are running away; that they see the light when they feel the heat; that they are chosen when they are shunned.

Weakness