I have never thought of myself as a good writer. Anyone who wants reassurance of that should read one of my first drafts. But I'm one of the world's great rewriters.
James A. MichenerRead
If a man happens to find himself, he has a mansion which he can inhabit with dignity all the days of his life.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Discovering oneself leads to a life of dignity and fulfillment.
This quote emphasizes the importance of self-discovery and understanding one's true self. When a person realizes their identity and worth, they can live with confidence and honor, enjoying a rich and meaningful existence akin to living in a grand mansion, regardless of external circumstances.
Themes
Self-DiscoveryIdentityDignityLifeWisdom
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about personal growth, one might reference this quote.
More from James A. Michener
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I think the crucial thing in the writing career is to find what you want to do and how you fit in. What somebody else does is of no concern whatever except as an interesting variation.
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I was brought up in the great tradition of the late nineteenth century: that a writer never complains, never explains and never disdains.
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The permanent temptation of life is to confuse dreams with reality. The permanent defeat of life comes when dreams are surrendered to reality.
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frustration, complication and misery are available in abundance, but so is God's grace.
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When we put the pen to paper, we articulate things in our life that we may have felt vague about. Before you write about something, somebody says, 'How do you feel?' and you say, 'Oh, I feel okay.' Then you write about it, and you discover you don't feel okay.
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Not a having and a resting, but a growing and becoming, is the character of perfection as culture conceives it.
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