Goethe Quotes

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

Nothing is worth more than this day.

Talent develops in tranquility, character in the full current of human life.

A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart.

Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.

Magic is believing in yourself. If you can do that, you can make anything happen.

In the realm of ideas, everything depends on enthusiasm… in the real world, all rests on perseverance.

The best way to predict your future is to create it.

Dream no small dreams for they have no power to move the hearts of men.

Every day we should hear at least one little song, read one good poem, see one exquisite picture, and if possible, speak a few sensible words.

Nothing is more important than reconnecting with your bliss. Nothing is as rich. Nothing is more real.

There is no genius without a mixture of insanity.

Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them become what they are capable of being.

The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.

A noble person attracts noble people, and knows how to hold on to them.

I find myself reverting to the ancient philosophies: Stoicism, Epicureanism. I would have lived at the time of those great thinkers of antiquity.

Plunge boldly into the thick of life, and seize it where you will, it is always interesting.

I am hard pressed to name any aspect of my own life that hasn’t been touched by what I have learned from Goethe.

We are shaped and fashioned by what we love.

He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home.

A person hears only what he understands.

To witness two lovers is a spectacle for the gods.

The hardest thing to see is what is in front of your eyes.

Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.

One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.

A person hears only what they understand.

He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.

Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing.

If you must tell me your opinions, tell me what you believe in. I have plenty of doubts of my own.

Talent does what it can; genius does what it must.

Character develops itself in the stream of life.

In the realm of ideas, everything depends on enthusiasm.

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

To think is easy. To act is hard. But the hardest thing in the world is to act in accordance with your thinking.

Tendency is not destiny, but it does determine the options available to you.

There is nothing more frightful than ignorance in action.

Life is the childhood of our immortality.

A man of wisdom delights in water.

Thinking is more interesting than knowing, but less interesting than looking.

To talk much and arrive nowhere is the same as climbing a tree to catch a fish.

The world is filled with willing people; some willing to work, the rest willing to let them.

Kindness is the golden chain by which society is bound together.

Are you in earnest? Seize this very minute! Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Only engage, and then the mind grows heated. Begin, and then the work will be completed.

Magic is belief in yourself, if you can do that, you can make anything happen.

In art the best is good enough.

The person born with a talent they are meant to use will find their greatest happiness in using it.

A creation of importance can only be produced when its author isolates himself, it is a child of solitude.

There is nothing more dreadful than imagination without taste.