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The lunatic's visions of horror are all drawn from the material of daily fact. Our civilization is founded on the shambles, and every individual existence goes out in a lonely spasm of helpless agony.

William James

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William James
Age: 68 †
Born: 1842
Born: January 11
Died: 1910
Died: August 26
Philosopher
Physician
Psychologist
University Teacher
W. James
Goes
Helpless
Vision
Drawn
Existence
Daily
Spasm
Fact
Lonely
Shambles
Individual
Horror
Lunatic
Facts
Material
Visions
Every
Materials
Founded
Civilization
Agony

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Democracy is still upon its trial. The civic genius of our people is its only bulwark.
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All our life, so far as it has definite form, is but a mass of habits.
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Real servants don't try to use God for their purposes. They let God use them for His purposes.
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Begin to be now what you will be hereafter.
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Keep the faculty of effort alive in you by a little gratuitous exercise every day.
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The philosophy which is so important in each of us is not a technical matter it is our more or less dumb sense of what life honestly and deeply means. It is only partly got from books it is our individual way of just seeing and feeling the total push and pressure of the cosmos.
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Belief creates the actual fact.
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Objective evidence and certitude are doubtless very fine ideals to play with, but where on this moonlit and dream-visited planet are they found?
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First... a new theory is attacked as absurd then it is admitted to be true, but obvious and insignificant finally it is seen to be so important that its adversaries claim that they themselves discovered it.
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From all these facts there emerges a very simple abstract program for the teacher to follow in keeping the attention of the child: Begin with the line of his native interests, and offer him objects that have some immediate connection with these.
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All natural goods perish. Riches take wings fame is a breath love is a cheat youth and health and pleasure vanish.
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... the intellect, everywhere invasive, shows everywhere its shallowing effect.
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Evil is a disease and worry over disease is itself an additional form of disease, which only adds to the original complaint.
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When a thing is new, people say: ‘It is not true.’ Later, when its truth becomes obvious, they say: ‘It is not important.’ Finally, when its importance cannot be denied, they say: ‘Anyway, it is not new.
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Psychology ought certainly to give the teacher radical help.
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