Thomas Carlyle was a Scottish historian, philosopher and writer who became one of the most influential thinkers and intellectuals of the 19th century. Mr. Carlyle was an accomplished historian who wrote The French Revolution: A History, which is a widely regarded authoritative account of the French Revolution.
Mr. Carlyle also wrote many other works including essays, books on philosophy, historical analyses and also satirical texts. He was also a very accomplished mathematician. He is credited with the concept of the “Carlyle Circle” which is a concept used in algebra and geometry.
After he became unhappy with the facilities at the British National Library, Mr. Carlyle also was responsible for the setting up of the world famous London Library.
Thomas Carlyle remains a rare breed – someone who had significant contributions to many different fields, particularly history and math. Aside from being a scholar, he was a very funny person by all accounts and well known for his wit and dry humor. For example, in one of his most famous quips he referred to Economics as “the dismal science.”
Best Thomas Carlyle Quotes
- “Nothing builds self-esteem and self-confidence like accomplishment.” Thomas Carlyle
- “I do not believe in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance.” Thomas Carlyle
- “A man without a goal is like a ship without a rudder.” Thomas Carlyle
- “He who has health, has hope; and he who has hope, has everything.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Permanence, perseverance and persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragements, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak.” Thomas Carlyle
- “A loving heart is the beginning of all knowledge.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Go as far as you can see; when you get there you’ll be able to see farther.” Thomas Carlyle
- “No pressure, no diamonds.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Culture is the process by which a person becomes all that they were created capable of being.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Permanence, perseverance and persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragements, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Nothing stops the man who desires to achieve. Every obstacle is simply a course to develop his achievement muscle. It’s a strengthening of his powers of accomplishment.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Teach a parrot the terms ‘supply and demand’ and you’ve got an economist.” Thomas Carlyle
- “A man without a goal is like a ship without a rudder.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Our main business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.” Thomas Carlyle
- “A well-written life is almost as rare as a well-spent one.” Thomas Carlyle
- “No pressure, no diamonds.” Thomas Carlyle
- “A loving heart is the beginning of all knowledge.” Thomas Carlyle
- “If Jesus Christ were to come today, people would not even crucify him. They would ask him to dinner, and hear what he had to say, and make fun of it.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Make yourself an honest man, and then you may be sure there is one less rascal in the world.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Show me the man you honor, and I will know what kind of man you are.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Man is a tool-using animal. Without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Silence is the element in which great things fashion themselves together; that at length they may emerge, full-formed and majestic, into the delight of life, which they are thenceforth to rule.” Thomas Carlyle
- “The real use of gunpowder is to make all men tall.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Make yourself an honest man, and then you may be sure there is one less rascal in the world.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Blessed is he who has found his work; let him ask no other blessedness.” Thomas Carlyle
- “I’ve got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom. Thomas Carlyle Great
- “Wonder is the basis of worship.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Adversity is the diamond dust Heaven polishes its jewels with.” Thomas Carlyle
- “The three great elements of modern civilization, Gun powder, Printing, and the Protestant religion.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Love is the only game that is not called on account of darkness.” Thomas CarlyleWhat we become depends on what we read after all of the professors have finished with us. The greatest university of all is a collection of books. Thomas Carlyle
- “It is a vain hope to make people happy by politics.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Humor has justly been regarded as the finest perfection of poetic genius.” Thomas Carlyle
- “What we become depends on what we read after all of the professors have finished with us. The greatest university of all is a collection of books.” Thomas Carlyle
- “Originality is a thing we constantly clamour for, and constantly quarrel with. Thomas Carlyle
Related: Kurt Vonnegut’s Best Quotes
Video: Thomas Carlyle Summary Biography and Summary of His Important Works
If you are interested in learning more about him, this video is worth a watch. Topics covered include: 1) His Biography 2) Sartor Resartus or The Tailor Re-tailored 3) The French Revolution: A History 4) On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and The Heroic in History 5) Past and Present
See also Otto Von Bismarck Quotes
Summary
Mr. Carlyle made many contributions to the fields of history and mathematics, as mentioned above. He was also considered to be anti-Semitic in some of his views and expressed many comments and views that were anti-jewish ad played into anti-semitic stereotypes.
Many people do not realize this but the famous Carlyle Hotel in NYC was named after him.
Image Credit: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
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