Quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misunderstood, and Socrates, and Jesus, and Luther, and Copernicus, and Galileo, and Newton, and every pure and wise spirit that ever took flesh. To be great is to be misunderstood.

Is it so bad, then, to be misunderstood? Pythagoras was misu

Summary

This quote, by Ralph Waldo Emerson, suggests that being misunderstood is not necessarily a negative thing. It highlights the fact that many influential and brilliant figures throughout history, such as Pythagoras, Socrates, Jesus, Luther, Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, were all misunderstood in their time. According to the quote, being great and renowned often entails being misunderstood as individuals who possess great wisdom and insight are often ahead of their time and go against societal norms and conventions. Therefore, the quote celebrates the idea that being misunderstood can be a sign of greatness.

Topics

By Ralph Waldo Emerson

Liked the quote? Share it with your friends.

Random Quotations

Nixon's full term was one of the most successful in U.S. his

Nixon's full term was one of the most successful in U.S. history, which is why he was re-elected by the largest plurality in the country's history.

I work, and then whenever I have any other time, I'm with my

I work, and then whenever I have any other time, I'm with my daughter, and then I go to sleep. I think you basically have to abandon the dreams of having any other adult activities in your life. You have to go to sleep whenever your child goes to sleep. That's basically how we're doing it.

Once upon a timeof all the good days in the year, on Christm

Once upon a timeof all the good days in the year, on Christmas Eveold Scrooge sat busy in his counting-house.

Charles Dickens

Dinosaurs was a cool idea, but we just couldn't find a way t

Dinosaurs was a cool idea, but we just couldn't find a way to make it really fun. We've got a bunch of great game ideas that we want to bring to life over the next several years.

I think poetry has lost an awful lot of its muscle because n

I think poetry has lost an awful lot of its muscle because nobody knows any. Nobody has to memorize poetry.

The great forces of history were real, after a fashion. But

The great forces of history were real, after a fashion. But when you examined them closely, those great forces always came down to the dreams and hungers and judgments of individuals. The choices they made were real. They mattered.

Orson Scott Card

Dreams History Choice Force

I had so many offers after 'True Blood' for things that were

I had so many offers after 'True Blood' for things that were someone in the same vein, but nowhere near Alan Ball's vision. Or something that was over-the-top and fantastical. And I've always wanted to play the regular, working-class mom, and I've never really had the chance to do that.

Michelle Forbes

A very small percentage of the people in this world will act

A very small percentage of the people in this world will actually experience and live today. So many people will be stuck on another day, another time that traumatized them and caused them to spiritually stutter so they miss out on this day.

Life Motivational Inspirational Appreciation Today Living Now

The New York playgoer is a child of nature, and he has an ho

The New York playgoer is a child of nature, and he has an honest and wholesome regard of whatever is atrocious in art.

Frank Moore Colby

O friend, my bosom said,Through thee alone the sky is arched

O friend, my bosom said,Through thee alone the sky is arched.Through thee the rose is red;All things through thee take nobler form,And look beyond the earth,The mill-round of our fate appearsA sun-path in thy worth.Me too thy nobleness has taughtTo master my despair;The fountains of my hidden lifeAre through thy friendship fair.

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays: Fir

If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop

If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable.

Damn it, Pierre, what do you want me to do We'll go sit with

Damn it, Pierre, what do you want me to do We'll go sit with empty chairs to get those guys back to the table. (To Pierre Trudeau, prime minister of Canada)