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Gadflies Quotes

Browse 23 quotes about Gadflies.

Gadflies Quotes

“Sadly, how often did mankind heed a warning? Gadflies are often swatted unmercifully.”

Humanity Mankind Human Nature Warning Harsh Reality Warnings Harsh Truth Gadfly Gadflies Warnings About Society

Book:Vocation of a Gadfly

Source: Vocation of a Gadfly

“I'm a chameleon, so changeable. I see myself as a gadfly and a questioner.”

Chameleon Gadflies

Author:Philip Johnson

“Seeing clearly within himself and always able to dodge around the ends of any position, including his own, Shaw assumed from the start the dual role of prophet and gadfly. To his contemporaries it appeared frivolous and contradictory to perform as both superman and socialist, sceptic and believer, legalist and heretic, high-brow and mob-orator. But feeling the duty to teach as well as to mirror mankind, Shaw did not accept himself as a contradictory being.”

Wells Ends Feelings Able Accepting Roles Teach Seeing Mankind Position Duty Mirrors Including Believer Prophet Socialist Contradictory Brows Heretic Frivolous Orators Dodge Sceptic Gadflies

Author:Jacques Barzun

“The Saylor Foundation is meant to be a gadfly to encourage Google, Apple, MIT, Harvard, the United States government, and the Chinese government to aggressively pursue digital education.”

States Government United United States Foundation Pursue Chinese Apples Digital Meant To Be Google Harvard State Government United States Government Mit Chinese Government Gadflies

Author:Michael J. Saylor

“So Socrates was a kind of gadfly. He was a sort of philosophical urban gorilla hanging around in the middle of Athens, asking these peculiar questions of everybody - important people, young men, slaves - questions that had to do with ultimately what's the life that's worth living. And Plato was one of the young men who hung around him, a very aristocratic young man, came from a very old, important family.”

People Men Kind Important Young Middle Philosophical Asking Slave Young Man Peculiar Hung Urban Plato Worth Living Athens Gorillas Hanging Around Aristocratic Gadflies

Author:Rebecca Goldstein

“So it's true, when all is said and done, grief is the price we pay for love.”

“An acquaintance merely enjoys your company, a fair-weather companion flatters when all is well, a true friend has your best interests at heart and the pluck to tell you what you need to hear.”

Needs Wells Heart Enjoy Interest Company Fairs True Love Weather Companion Acquaintance True Friend Caring For Others Pluck Best Interests At Heart Gadflies Fair Weather Friend

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“...it's just another one of those things I don't understand: everyone impresses upon you how unique you are, encouraging you to cultivate your individuality while at the same time trying to squish you and everyone else into the same ridiculous mould. It's an artist's right to rebel against the world's stupidity”

World Trying Funny Artist Stupid Unique Individuality Stupidity Ridiculous Rebel Impress Mould Irony Of Life Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“It was not curiosity that killed the goose who laid the golden egg, but an insatiable greed that devoured common sense.”

Common Curiosity Greed Common Sense Golden Eggs Geese Insatiable Golden Eggs Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“Errors do not cease to be errors simply because they're ratified into law.”

Law Errors Cease Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“I am an artist you know ... it is my right to be odd.”

Knows Artist Odd Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“Make your lives a masterpiece, you only get one canvas.”

Canvas Masterpiece Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“It's an artist's right to rebel against the world's stupidity.”

World Artist Stupidity Rebel Irony Of Life Gadflies

Author:E. A. Bucchianeri

“In Plato's republic, poets were considered subversive, a danger to the republic. I kind of relish that role. So I see my present role as a gadfly, to use my soapbox to promote my various ideas and obsesions.”

Kind Ideas Use Roles Danger Poet Various Republic Plato Relish Subversive Plato S Soapbox Gadflies Plato's Republic

Author:Lawrence Ferlinghetti

“I don't think writers should be convenient examples. I don't think we should make people feel settled. I don't try to be a gadfly, but I do think that real ideas are troublesome. There should be something about my work that leaves the reader unsettled. I intend that.”

People Thinking Feels Should Trying Ideas Real Example Reader Convenient Troublesome Gadflies

Author:Richard Rodriguez

“Conflict is the gadfly of thought. It stirs us to observation and memory. It instigates invention. It shocks us out of sheep-like passivity, and sets us at noting and contriving…conflict is a sine qua non of reflection and ingenuity.”

Memories Conflict Reflection Invention Observation Shock Sheep Ingenuity Passivity Gadflies

Book:Human Nature and Conduct: An Introduction to Social Psychology

Source: Human Nature and Conduct: An Introduction to Social Psychology

“Athens is like a sluggish horse, and I am the gadfly trying to sting it into life.”

Trying Horse Athens Sluggish Gadflies

Book:Sophie's World

Source: Sophie's World

“Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half-truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, so must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood.”

“I'm noticing an exciting trend around the country: a resurgence of interest in Christian apologetics (the defense of the faith). This is a reaction to the current attacks on the essentials of Christianity that are coming from militant atheists, radical professors, and Internet gadflies.”

Country Christian Interest Christianity Internet Essentials Exciting Atheist Currents Defense Reactions Radical Trends Professors Noticing Militant Apologetic Resurgence Gadflies

Author:Lee Strobel

“We must not overlook the role that extremists play. They are the gadflies that keep society from being too complacent.”

Play Liberty Roles Empathy Apathy Extremist Complacent Gadflies

Author:Abraham Flexner

“I am that gadfly which God has attached to the state, and all day long and in all places am always fastening upon you, arousing and persuading and reproaching you.”

Long States Curiosity Persuading Gadflies

Author:Socrates

“We must not overlook the role that extremists play. They are the gadflies that keep society from being too complacent or self-satisfied; they are, if sound, the spearhead of progress. If they are fundamentally wrong, free discussion will in time put an end to them.”

Ifs Ends Self Play Science Sound Roles Progress Society Satisfied Discussion Extremist Complacent Gadflies

Author:Abraham Flexner

“Give a bull grass, sweet water and a willing heifer and he is happy. But a man is never content. If no gadflies of worry exist he will invent them.”

Ifs Men Giving Water Worry Willing Sweet Grass Bulls Gadflies

Author:Alison Fell