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James Agate Quotes

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James Agate, a British writer, critic, and editor, was born on September 9, 1877, and died on June 6, 1947. His works covered a range of fields including literary criticism, dramatic criticism, and travel literature.

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All Force Years Bed Doe England Englishmen Long Made Men Mind

Famous James Agate Quotes

“All I want is a modest place in Mr X's Good Reading, Miss Y's Good Writing, and that new edition of One Thousand Best Bits of Recent Prose.”

Want Writing Reading Bits Missing Thousand Prose Modest Good Writing Good Reading

Book:Ego 5: Again More of the Autobiography of James Agate

Source: Ego 5: Again More of the Autobiography of James Agate

“Perhaps, after all, there is something in the theory that only the ultra-busy can find time for everything.”

Theory Busy Ultras

Book:A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

Source: A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

“To force myself to earn more money, I determined to spend more.”

Force Money Determined More Money

Author:James Agate

“New Year's resolution: To refrain from saying witty, unkind things, unless they are really witty and irreparably damaging.”

Years Witty Wit Resolution New Year Refrain Unkind New Year's Resolutions

Book:A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

Source: A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

“New Year's Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time.”

Source: A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

“Theatre director: a person engaged by the management to conceal the fact that the players cannot act.”

Persons Facts Player Directors Management Theatre Engaged Theatrical Theatre Directors

Book:Ego 6: Once More the Autobiography of James Agate

Source: Ego 6: Once More the Autobiography of James Agate

“The English instinctively admire any man who has no talent and is modest about it.”

Men Home Talent Travel England Admire Admiration Modest Insulting

Book:The Later Ego: Consisting of Ego 8 and Ego 9

Source: The Later Ego: Consisting of Ego 8 and Ego 9

“A professional is a man who can do his job when he doesn't feel like it. An amateur is a man who can't do his job when he does feel like it.”

Men Feels Doe Jobs Can Do Work

Book:A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

Source: A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

“The Englishman can get along with sex quite perfectly so long as he can pretend that it isn't sex but something else.”

Long Sex Englishmen

Author:James Agate

“In her early days she had that beatific expression characteristic of Victorian prettiness - like a sheep painted by Raphael.”

Women Expression Characteristics Sheep Victorian Raphael Prettiness

Book:A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

Source: A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6

“This was an actress who, for twenty years, had the world at her feet. She kicked it away, and the ball rolled out of her reach.”

World Years Women Feet Balls Twenties Actresses

Book:Ego 4: yet more of the autobiography of James Agate

Source: Ego 4: yet more of the autobiography of James Agate

“The maddest phenomenon in this wholly mad world – that the filming or wirelessing of an event, whether it is the Grand National or an attack in force on the Maginot Line, is held to be of more importance than the event itself.”

World Force Lines Events Importance Mad Phenomenon Mad World

Book:Ego 4: yet more of the autobiography of James Agate

Source: Ego 4: yet more of the autobiography of James Agate

“I don't know very much but what I do know I know better than anybody, and I don't want to argue about it…My mind is not a bed to be made and re-made.”

Knows Want Mind Made Bed Arguing

Author:James Agate

“The worst of failure of this kind is that it spoils the market for more competent performers.”

Kind Worst Failure Performers Spoil Competent

Book:A Shorter Ego: Ego 7, Ego 8, Ego 9

Source: A Shorter Ego: Ego 7, Ego 8, Ego 9

“My mind is not a bed to be made and remade.”

Mind Made Bed

Author:James Agate

“Long experience has taught me that in England nobody goes to the theatre unless he or she has bronchitis.”

Long Taught Experience England Theatre Bronchitis

Book:My Theatre Talks

Source: My Theatre Talks

“I... wonder what it is in the New York air that enables me to sit up till all hours of the night in an atmosphere which in London would make a horse dizzy, but here merely clears the brain.”

Night Hours Brain Wonder Air New York Horse London Atmosphere Dizzy

Book:A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

Source: A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

“Don't pity me now, don't pity me never; I'm going to do nothing for ever and ever.”

Pity

Book:A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

Source: A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James Agate

“Shaw's plays are the price we pay for Shaw's prefaces.”

Play Pay

Author:James Agate

“Your Englishman, confronted by something abnormal will always pretend that it isn't there. If, however, you force him to look into it, he'll at once pretend that he sees the object not for what it is but for something that he would like it to be.”

Ifs Looks Force Objects Englishmen Abnormal

Author:James Agate

About the Author

Born: September 9, 1877
Died: June 6, 1947
Known for: Author
Quotes: 20

Books & Sources

A Shorter Ego: Ego 4, Ego 5, Ego 6Related source material

A Shorter Ego: The Autobiography of James AgateRelated source material

Ego 4: yet more of the autobiography of James AgateRelated source material

A Shorter Ego: Ego 7, Ego 8, Ego 9Related source material

Ego 5: Again More of the Autobiography of James AgateRelated source material

Ego 6: Once More the Autobiography of James AgateRelated source material

My Theatre TalksRelated source material

The Later Ego: Consisting of Ego 8 and Ego 9Related source material

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