The community stagnates without the impulse of the individual. The impulse dies away without the sympathy of the community. – William James
The sway of alcohol over mankind is unquestionably due to its power to stimulate the mystical faculties of human nature, usually crushed to earth by the cold facts and dry criticisms of the sober hour. – William James
Pure experience is the name I gave to the immediate flux of life which furnishes the material to our later reflection with its conceptual categories. – William James
No matter how full a reservoir of maxims one may possess, and no matter how good ones sentiments may be, if one have not taken advantage of every concrete opportunity to act, ones character may remain entirely unaffected for the better. With good intentions, hell proverbially is paved. – William James
I feel theres a power in theatre, but its an indirect power. Its like the relationship of the sleeper to the unconscious. You discover things you cant afford to countenance in waking life. You can forget them, remember them a day later or not have any idea what they are about. – Tony Kushner