Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily.
—Napoleon I (1769–1821) Emperor of France
No man is defeated without some resentment, which will be continued with obstinacy while he believes himself in the right, and asserted with bitterness, if even to his own conscience he is detected in the wrong.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Defeat may serve as well as victory to shake the soul and let the glory out.
—Edwin Markham (1852–1940) American Poet, Educator
A defeated wrestler is not tired of wrestling.
—Turkish Proverb
If you live long enough, you’ll see that every victory turns into a defeat.
—Simone de Beauvoir (1908–86) French Philosopher, Writer, Feminist
Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary.
—Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869–1948) Indian Hindu Political leader
When a man is pushed, tormented, defeated, he has a chance to learn something; he has been put on his wits … he has gained facts, learned his ignorance, is cured of the insanity of conceit, has got moderation and real skill.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Commonly, people believe that defeat is characterized by a general bustle and a feverish rush. Bustle and rush are the signs of victory, not of defeat. Victory is a thing of action. It is a house in the act of being built. Every participant in victory sweats and puffs, carrying the stones for the building of the house. But defeat is a thing of weariness, of incoherence, of boredom. And above all of futility.
—Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900–44) French Novelist, Aviator
Victory has 100 fathers and defeat is an orphan.
—Common Proverb
Be careful that victories do not carry the seed of future defeats.
—Ralph Washington Sockman (1889–1970) American United Methodist Pastor
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.
—Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American Head of State, Political leader, Historian, Explorer
A reformer is one who sets forth cheerfully toward sure defeat.
—Lydia Maria Child (1802–80) American Abolitionist, Writer
There are some defeats more triumphant than victories.
—Michel de Montaigne (1533–92) French Essayist
Defeat should never be a source of discouragement, but rather a fresh stimulus.
—Robert South (1634–1716) English Theologian, Preacher
I’ve learned that something constructive comes from every defeat.
—Tom Landry (1924–2000) American Sportsperson
Victory is sweetest when you’ve known defeat.
—Malcolm S. Forbes (1919–1990) American Publisher, Businessperson
You’ve got to learn to survive a defeat. That’s when you develop character.
—Richard Nixon (1913–94) American Head of State, Lawyer
The injustice of defeat lies in the fact that its most innocent victims are made to look like heartless accomplices. It is impossible to see behind defeat, the sacrifices, the austere performance of duty, the self-discipline and the vigilance that are there—those things the god of battle does not take account of.
—Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900–44) French Novelist, Aviator
Those who are prepared to die for any cause are seldom defeated.
—Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) Indian Head of State
He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat.
—Napoleon I (1769–1821) Emperor of France
For by superior energies; more strict affiance in each other; faith more firm in their unhallowed principles, the bad have fairly earned a victory over the weak, the vacillating, inconsistent good.
—William Wordsworth (1770–1850) English Poet
Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.
—Sun Tzu (fl. c.544–496 BCE) Chinese General, Military Theorist
Defeat doesn’t finish a man—quit does. A man is not finished when he’s defeated. He’s finished when he quits.
—Richard Nixon (1913–94) American Head of State, Lawyer
Victory or defeat? It is the slogan of all-powerful militarism in every belligerent nation. And yet, what can victory bring to the proletariat?
—Rosa Parks (1913–2005) American Civil Rights Leader
Not in the clamor of the crowded street, not in the shouts and plaudits of the throng, but in ourselves, are triumph and defeat.
—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–82) American Poet, Educator, Academic
The purpose of life is not to win. The purpose of life is to grow and to share. When you come to look back on all that you have done in life, you will get more satisfaction from the pleasure you have brought into other people’s lives that you will from the times that you outdid and defeated them.
—Harold Kushner (b.1935) American Jewish Religious Leader, Priest
Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940) American Novelist
Intent is not a thought, or an object, or a wish. Intent is what can make a man succeed when his thoughts tell him that he is defeated. It operates in spite of the warrior’s indulgence. Intent is what makes him invulnerable. Intent is what sends a shaman through a wall, through space, to infinity.
—Carlos Castaneda (1925–98) Peruvian-born American Anthropologist, Author
Never talk defeat. Use words like hope, belief, faith, victory.
—Norman Vincent Peale (1898–1993) American Clergyman, Self-Help Author
What is defeat?—Nothing but education; nothing but the first step to something better.
—Wendell Phillips (1811–84) American Abolitionist, Lawyer, Orator
Most human organizations that fall short of their goals do so not because of stupidity or faulty doctrines, but because of internal decay and rigidification. They grow stiff in the joints. They get in a rut. They go to seed.
—James A. Garfield (1831–81) American Head of State, Lawyer, Educator
My lowest days as a Christian [and There Were Low Ones—Seven Months Worth Of Them In Prison, To Be Exact] have been more fulfilling and rewarding than all the days of glory in the White House.
—Charles Caleb Colton (c.1780–1832) English Clergyman, Aphorist
The greatest test of courage on earth is to bear defeat without losing heart.
—Robert G. Ingersoll (1833–99) American Lawyer, Orator, Agnostic
All we have to do is to receive what we are given…We are given the naturalness to love someone, to be calm in crisis, to ignore self-defeating suggestions, to be pleasant, forgiving, tender, helpful, unworried, brave, energetic.
—Vernon Howard (1918–92) American Spiritual Teacher, Philosopher
There is only one reason for an individual to side-step to the useless side: the fear of a defeat on the useful side.
—Alfred Adler (1870–1937) Austrian Psychiatrist
Defeat is a school in which truth always grows strong.
—Henry Ward Beecher (1813–87) American Clergyman, Writer
The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.
—Sun Tzu (fl. c.544–496 BCE) Chinese General, Military Theorist
To walk through the ruined cities of Germany is to feel an actual doubt about the continuity of civilization.
—George Orwell (1903–50) English Novelist, Journalist
Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.
—Sun Tzu (fl. c.544–496 BCE) Chinese General, Military Theorist
In the time of darkest defeat, victory may be nearest.
—William McKinley (1843–1901) American Republican Statesman, 25th President
If a victory is told in detail, one can no longer distinguish it from a defeat.
—Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–80) French Philosopher, Playwright, Novelist, Screenwriter, Political Activist
When defeat is inevitable, it is wisest to yield.
—Quintilian (c.35–c.100 CE) Roman Rhetorician, Literary Critic
The defeats and victories of the fellows at the top aren’t always defeats and victories for the fellows at the bottom
—Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956) German Poet, Playwright, Theater Personality
If you can’t accept losing, you can’t win.
—Vince Lombardi, Jr. (1913–70) American Football Player, Coach
We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist.
—Queen Victoria (1819–1901) British Royal
The problems of victory are more agreeable than those of defeat, but they are no less difficult.
—Winston Churchill (1874–1965) British Head of State, Political leader, Historian, Journalist, Author
Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.
—Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American Head of State, Political leader, Historian, Explorer
Politics has become so expensive that it takes a lot of money even to be defeated.
—Will Rogers (1879–1935) American Actor, Rancher, Humorist
I think everyone should experience defeat at least once during their career. You learn a lot from it.
—Lou Holtz (1893–1980) American Stage Performer
Victory has a thousand fathers, but defeat is an orphan.
—John F. Kennedy (1917–63) American Head of State, Journalist