Feather
Home People Ralph Waldo Emerson It Is Not The Length Of
Ralph Waldo Emerson Portrait

"It is not the length of life, but the depth."

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

It Is Not The Length Of

It is not the length of life, but the depth.

— Ralph Waldo Emerson
depth life meaning

About this quote

This aphorism comes from Emerson's essay "Illusions," the final essay in The Conduct of Life (1860), his last major essay collection. Published when Emerson was 57, the essay reflects his mature skepticism about human perception and the consolations available within life's uncertainties. The brevity of the line is characteristic of Emerson's aphoristic style, which he honed across decades of lecturing and journal-writing before condensing his ideas into published essays.

Source

The Conduct of Life: Illusions (1860)

What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson
View all quotes by Ralph Waldo Emerson →
H
Henry David Thoreau
Philosopher
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Philosopher
Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Writer