Depend on no man, on no friend but him who can depend on himself. He only who acts conscientiously toward himself, will act so toward others.
—Johann Kaspar Lavater (1741–1801) Swiss Theologian, Poet
The experiences of camp life show that a man does have a choice of action. There were enough examples, often of a heroic nature, which proved that apathy could be overcome, irritability suppressed. Man can preserve a vestige of spiritual freedom, of independence of mind, even in such terrible conditions of psychic and physical stress. We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken away from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s way. The way in which a man accepts his fate and all the suffering it entails, the way in which he takes up his cross, gives him ample opportunity—even in the most difficult circumstances—to add a deeper meaning to life.
—Viktor Frankl (1905–97) Austrian Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist
Let all your views in life be directed to a solid, however moderate, independence; without it no man can be happy, nor even honest.
—Junius Unidentified English Writer
God has made no one absolute. The rich depend on the poor, as well as the poor on the rich. The world is but a magnificent building; all the stones are gradually cemented together. No one subsists by himself.
—Owen Feltham (1602–68) English Essayist
Without moral and intellectual independence, there is no anchor for national independence.
—David Ben-Gurion (1886–1973) Russian-born Israeli Head of State
Be your own palace, or the world is your jail.
—John Donne (1572–1631) English Poet, Cleric
I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–62) American Philosopher
The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your own arm.
—Swedish Proverb
Freedom is the emancipation from the arbitrary rule of other men.
—Mortimer J. Adler (1902–2001) American Philosopher, Educator
The highest manifestation of life consists in this: that a being governs its own actions. A thing which is always subject to the direction of another is somewhat of a dead thing.
—Thomas Aquinas (1225–74) Italian Catholic Priest, Philosopher, Theologian
Independence I have long considered as the grand blessing of life, the basis of every virtue; and independence I will ever secure by contracting my wants, though I were to live on a barren heath.
—Mary Wollstonecraft (1759–97) English Writer, Feminist
Don’t let them fool ya,
Or even try to school ya! Oh, no!
We’ve got a mind of our own,
So go to hell if what you’re thinking is not right!
Love would never leave us alone,
A-yin the darkness there must come out to light.
—Bob Marley (1945–81) Jamaican Musician, Singer, Songwriter
The basic need of the creator is independence. The reasoning mind cannot work under any form of compulsion. It cannot be curbed, sacrificed or subordinated to any consideration whatsoever. It demands total independence in function and in motive.
—Ayn Rand (1905–82) Russian-born American Novelist, Philosopher
The greatest gifts you can give your children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence.
—Denis Waitley (1933–2025) American Speaker, Consultant, Self-help Pioneer
We carry our homes within us which enables us to fly.
—John Cage (1912–92) American Composer
The moral progression of a people can scarcely begin till they are independent.
—James Martineau (1805–1900) English Philosopher, Religious Leader
The most unpardonable sin in society is independence of thought.
—Emma Goldman (1869–1940) Lithuanian-American Anarchist, Feminist
It is not the greatness of a man’s means that makes him independent, so much as the smallness of his wants.
—William Cobbett (1763–1835) English Journalist, Social Reformer
Even as people take pride in their national independence, we know we are becoming more and more interdependent.
—Bill Clinton (b.1946) American Head of State, Lawyer, Public Speaker
Happy the man to whom heaven has given a morsel of bread without laying him under the obligation of thanking any other for it than heaven itself.
—Miguel de Cervantes (1547–1616) Spanish Novelist
The beauty of independence, departure, actions that rely on themselves.
—Walt Whitman (1819–92) American Poet, Essayist, Journalist
If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience, and ability.
—Henry Ford (1863–1947) American Businessperson, Engineer
Every human has four endowments- self awareness, conscience, independent will and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom… The power to choose, to respond, to change.
—Stephen Covey (1932–2012) American Self-help Author
A great step towards independence is good humored stomach.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) (c.4 BCE–65 CE) Roman Stoic Philosopher, Statesman, Tragedian
Mickey Mouse is, to me, a symbol of independence. He was a means to an end.
—Walt Disney (1901–66) American Entrepreneur
We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it.
—William Faulkner (1897–1962) American Novelist
I don’t need anyone to rectify my existence. The most profound relationship we will ever have is the one with ourselves.
—Shirley MacLaine (b.1934) American Actress, Dancer, Activist
The strongest man in the world is he who stands most alone.
—Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) Norwegian Playwright
So live that you can look any man in the eye and tell him to go to hell.
—Unknown
There is often as much independence in not being led as in not being driven.
—Tryon Edwards (1809–94) American Theologian, Author
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