Quotes from Henrik Ibsen

What business has science and capitalism got, bringing all these new inventions into the works, before society has produced a generation educated up to using them!

Never wear your best trousers when you go out to fight for freedom and truth.

I'm afraid for all those who'll have the bread snatched from their mouths by these machines. What business has science and capitalism got, bringing all these new inventions into the works, before society has produced a generation educated up to using them!

A community is like a ship, everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.

A forest bird never wants a cage.

A man should never put on his best trousers when he goes out to battle for freedom and truth.

A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.

Ah, I fancy it is just the same with most of what you call your emancipation. You have read yourself into a number of new ideas and opinions. You have got a sort of smattering of recent discoveries in various fields -- discoveries that seem to overthrow certain principles which have hitherto been held impregnable and unassailable. But all this has only been a matter of intellect, Miss West -- superficial acquisition. It has not passed into your blood.

Castles in the air - they are so easy to take refuge in. And so easy to build, too.

Different people have different duties assigned to them by Nature Nature has given one the power or the desire to do this, and the other that. Each bird must sing with his own throat.

Money may be the husk of many things, but not the kernel. It brings you food, but not appetite; medicine, but not health; acquaintances, but not friends; servants, but not faithfulness; days of joy, but not peace and happiness.

One should never put on one's best trousers to go out to battle for freedom and truth.

People who don't know how to keep themselves healthy ought to have the decency to get themselves buried, and not waste time about it.

The great secret of power is never to will to do more than you can accomplish.

The strongest man in the world is he who stands alone.

The worst enemy of truth and freedom in our society is the compact majority. Yes, the damned, compact, liberal majority.

What in fact have I achieved, however much it may seem Bits and pieces trivialities. But here they won't tolerate anything else, or anything more. If I wanted to take one step in advance of the current views and opinions of the day, that would put paid to any power I have. Do you know what we are those of us who count as pillars of society We are society's tools, neither more nor less.

What ought a man to be Well, my short answer is himself.

Your home is regarded as a model home, your life as a model life. But all this splendor, and you along with it... it's just as though it were built upon a shifting quagmire. A moment may come, a word can be spoken, and both you and all this splendor will collapse.

These heroes of finance are like beads on a string; when one slips off, all the rest follow.

The starving poet business is no good nowadays.

Take the life...lie away from the average man and straight away you take away his happiness.

The strongest man in the world is he who stands alone.

If you doubt yourself, then indeed you stand on shaky ground.