Endurance is nobler than strength, and patience than beauty.
Mountains are to the rest of the body of the earth, what violent muscular action is to the body of man. The muscles and tendons of its anatomy are, in the mountain, brought out with force and convulsive energy, full of expression, passion, and strength.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote compares mountains to the muscular strength and energy of the human body, emphasizing their powerful presence.
John Ruskin likens the grandeur and raw power of mountains to the muscular action of the human body. He suggests that just as the muscles and tendons exhibit strength and vitality, mountains embody a similar force, representing a dynamic and expressive part of the Earth's anatomy. This analogy highlights the majestic and overwhelming nature of mountains, portraying them as vital and aggressive manifestations of natural power.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a nature conservation speech to emphasize the importance of preserving mountainous landscapes.
More from John Ruskin
All quotes →In health of mind and body, men should see with their own eyes, hear and speak without trumpets, walk on their feet, not on wheels, and work and war with their arms, not with engine-beams, nor rifles warranted to kill twenty men at a shot before you can see them.
You talk of the scythe of Time, and the tooth of Time: I tell you, Time is scytheless and toothless; it is we who gnaw like the worm - we who smite like the scythe. It is ourselves who abolish - ourselves who consume: we are the mildew, and the flame.
To be able to ask a question clearly is two-thirds of the way to getting it answered.
See that your children be taught, not only the labors of the earth, but the loveliness of it.
A little thought and a little kindness are often worth more than a great deal of money.
Similar quotes
The whole world is, to me, very much "alive" - all the little growing things, even the rocks. I can't look at a swell bit of grass and earth, for instance, without feeling the essential life - the things going on - within them. The same goes for a mountain, or a bit of the ocean, or a magnificent piece of old wood.
The unexplainable thing in nature that makes me feel the world is big fat beyond my understanding – to understand maybe by trying to put it into form. To find the feeling of infinity on the horizon line or just over the next hill.
Let me enjoy the earth no less because the all-enacting light that fashioned forth its loveliness had other aims than my delight.
I am glad I will not be young in a future without wilderness.
Nature has neither kernel Nor shell
Given the nature and magnitude of the challenge, national action alone is insufficient. No nation can address this challenge on its own. No region can insulate itself from these climate changes. That is why we need to confront climate change within a global framework, one that guarantees the highest level of international cooperation.