...Writings can be stolen, or changed, or used for evil purposes. But isn't the risk worth taking? The more people who share knowledge, the greater safeguard for it. Isn't there more danger in ignorance than knowledge?
Lloyd AlexanderRead
Long ago I yearned to be a hero without knowing, in truth, what a hero was. Now, perhaps, I understand it a little better. A grower of turnips or a shaper of clay, a Commot farmer or a king--every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone. Once you told me that the seeking counts more than the finding. So, too, must the striving count more than the gain.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True heroism is defined by selflessness and the effort to help others rather than personal gain.
In this quote, Lloyd Alexander reflects on the concept of heroism, suggesting that anyone who strives to contribute to the welfare of others, whether they are a farmer or a king, embodies the true essence of a hero. He emphasizes that the journey of striving for goodness and helping others holds more value than any personal achievements or gains one may attain, aligning the idea of heroism with selflessness and communal effort.
Themes
HeroSelflessnessStrivingEffortCommunity
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about community service, you might say, 'As Lloyd Alexander pointed out, every man can be a hero by striving for others.'
More from Lloyd Alexander
All quotes →Perhaps one reason we are fascinated by cats is because such a small animal can contain so much independence, dignity, and freedom of spirit. Unlike the dog, the cat's personality is never bet on a human's. He demands acceptance on his own terms.
Lloyd AlexanderRead
We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself.
Lloyd AlexanderRead
In whatever guise - our own daily nightmares of war, intolerance, inhumanity or the struggles of an Assistant Pig-Keeper against the Lord of Death - the problems are agonizingly familiar. And an openness to compassion, love, and mercy is as essential to us here and now as it is to any inhabitant of an imaginary kingdom.
Lloyd AlexanderRead
Llonio said life was a net for luck; to Hevydd the Smith life was a forge; and to Dwyvach the Weaver-Woman a loom. They spoke truly, for it is all of these. But you,' Taran said, his eyes meeting the potter's, 'you have shown me life is one thing more. It is clay to be shaped, as raw clay on a potter's wheel.
Lloyd AlexanderRead
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