A Literary Quote for the Day
@enocktheyellow.bsky.social
Reader, traveler, gardener, collector, spouse, parent, grandparent, retired attorney, observer, friend in need, elitist, compassionate, supportive, amused, amusing, confused, tolerant, concerned. As a person born in America, among the luckiest in history.
Pinned
The next series of quotations are the first sentences of each of Shakespeare's plays from the Avon Edition of Shakespeare's Works copyrighted in 1868. My edition dates, I believe, from 1898. The illustrations accompanying the quotes are interspersed with the text.
Now, say, Chatillon, what would France with us?
-- William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John
-- William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John
December 24, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Now, say, Chatillon, what would France with us?
-- William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John
-- William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John
Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour
Draws on apace; four happy days bring in
Another moon: but, O, methinks, how slow
This moon wanes! she lingers by desires,
Like to a step-dame or a dowager
Long withering out a young man’s revenue.
-- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer-Night’s Dream
Draws on apace; four happy days bring in
Another moon: but, O, methinks, how slow
This moon wanes! she lingers by desires,
Like to a step-dame or a dowager
Long withering out a young man’s revenue.
-- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer-Night’s Dream
December 23, 2025 at 2:18 AM
Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour
Draws on apace; four happy days bring in
Another moon: but, O, methinks, how slow
This moon wanes! she lingers by desires,
Like to a step-dame or a dowager
Long withering out a young man’s revenue.
-- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer-Night’s Dream
Draws on apace; four happy days bring in
Another moon: but, O, methinks, how slow
This moon wanes! she lingers by desires,
Like to a step-dame or a dowager
Long withering out a young man’s revenue.
-- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer-Night’s Dream
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
-- William Shakespeare, Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
-- William Shakespeare, Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
December 22, 2025 at 1:50 AM
Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
-- William Shakespeare, Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
-- William Shakespeare, Prologue to Romeo and Juliet
Old John of Gaunt, time-honour’d Lancaster,
Hast thou, according to thy oath and band,
Brought hither Henry Hereford thy bold son,
Here to make good the boisterous late appeal,
Which then our leisure would not let us hear,
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
Hast thou, according to thy oath and band,
Brought hither Henry Hereford thy bold son,
Here to make good the boisterous late appeal,
Which then our leisure would not let us hear,
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
December 20, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Old John of Gaunt, time-honour’d Lancaster,
Hast thou, according to thy oath and band,
Brought hither Henry Hereford thy bold son,
Here to make good the boisterous late appeal,
Which then our leisure would not let us hear,
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
Hast thou, according to thy oath and band,
Brought hither Henry Hereford thy bold son,
Here to make good the boisterous late appeal,
Which then our leisure would not let us hear,
Against the Duke of Norfolk, Thomas Mowbray?
Let fame, that all hunt after in their lives,
Live registered upon our brazen tombs,
And then grace us in the disgrace of death;
When, in despite of cormorant devouring Time,
The endeavor of this present breath may buy
Live registered upon our brazen tombs,
And then grace us in the disgrace of death;
When, in despite of cormorant devouring Time,
The endeavor of this present breath may buy
December 19, 2025 at 1:40 PM
Let fame, that all hunt after in their lives,
Live registered upon our brazen tombs,
And then grace us in the disgrace of death;
When, in despite of cormorant devouring Time,
The endeavor of this present breath may buy
Live registered upon our brazen tombs,
And then grace us in the disgrace of death;
When, in despite of cormorant devouring Time,
The endeavor of this present breath may buy
Cease to persuade, my loving Proteus:
Home-keeping youth have ever homely wits.
-- William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Home-keeping youth have ever homely wits.
-- William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
December 18, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Cease to persuade, my loving Proteus:
Home-keeping youth have ever homely wits.
-- William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Home-keeping youth have ever homely wits.
-- William Shakespeare, The Two Gentlemen of Verona
I’ll pheeze you, in faith.
-- William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
-- William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
December 17, 2025 at 3:14 PM
I’ll pheeze you, in faith.
-- William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
-- William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
Noble patricians, patrons of my right,
Defend the justice of my cause with arms,
And, countrymen, my loving followers,
Plead my successive title with your swords:
I am his first-born son, that was the last
Defend the justice of my cause with arms,
And, countrymen, my loving followers,
Plead my successive title with your swords:
I am his first-born son, that was the last
December 16, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Noble patricians, patrons of my right,
Defend the justice of my cause with arms,
And, countrymen, my loving followers,
Plead my successive title with your swords:
I am his first-born son, that was the last
Defend the justice of my cause with arms,
And, countrymen, my loving followers,
Plead my successive title with your swords:
I am his first-born son, that was the last
Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall
And by the doom of death end woes and all.
-- William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors
And by the doom of death end woes and all.
-- William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors
December 15, 2025 at 1:06 PM
Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall
And by the doom of death end woes and all.
-- William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors
And by the doom of death end woes and all.
-- William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors
Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour’d upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
-- William Shakespeare, Richard III
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour’d upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
-- William Shakespeare, Richard III
December 14, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour’d upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
-- William Shakespeare, Richard III
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour’d upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried.
-- William Shakespeare, Richard III
I wonder how the King escaped our hands.
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 3
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 3
December 13, 2025 at 2:10 PM
I wonder how the King escaped our hands.
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 3
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 3
As by your high imperial Majesty
I had in charge at my depart for France,
As procurator to your Excellence,
To marry Princess Margaret for your Grace,
So, in the famous ancient city Tours,
In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil,
I had in charge at my depart for France,
As procurator to your Excellence,
To marry Princess Margaret for your Grace,
So, in the famous ancient city Tours,
In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil,
December 12, 2025 at 12:26 PM
As by your high imperial Majesty
I had in charge at my depart for France,
As procurator to your Excellence,
To marry Princess Margaret for your Grace,
So, in the famous ancient city Tours,
In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil,
I had in charge at my depart for France,
As procurator to your Excellence,
To marry Princess Margaret for your Grace,
So, in the famous ancient city Tours,
In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil,
Hung be the heavens with black, yield day to night!
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 1
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 1
December 11, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Hung be the heavens with black, yield day to night!
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 1
-- William Shakespeare, King Henry VI, Part 1
This great round world, on which we live, is very old; so old that no one knows when it was made.
-- Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible (1904) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #322]
-- Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible (1904) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #322]
![This great round world, on which we live, is very old; so old that no one knows when it was made.
-- Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible (1904) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #322]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreiacv2uu2hpmegi7dfesimlb7btj3jyhjxomnoxv55pb2wz2wxrp5q@jpeg)
December 10, 2025 at 3:51 PM
This great round world, on which we live, is very old; so old that no one knows when it was made.
-- Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible (1904) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #322]
-- Rev. Jesse Lyman Hurlbut, Hurlbut’s Story of the Bible (1904) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #322]
It was when coming back to the mines, after a trip to Monterey, that the Girl first met him.
-- David Belasco, The Girl of the Golden West (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #320]
-- David Belasco, The Girl of the Golden West (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #320]
![It was when coming back to the mines, after a trip to Monterey, that the Girl first met him.
--David Belasco, The Girl of the Golden West (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #320]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreihbuakhifaqhegfjh3ajgty3spnnlwuc7usjsb3b3ftbonklevnrm@jpeg)
December 9, 2025 at 12:43 PM
It was when coming back to the mines, after a trip to Monterey, that the Girl first met him.
-- David Belasco, The Girl of the Golden West (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #320]
-- David Belasco, The Girl of the Golden West (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #320]
When we look at living creatures from an outward point of view, one of the first things that strike us is that they are bundles of habits.
-- William James, Habit (1890) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #314]
-- William James, Habit (1890) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #314]
![When we look at living creatures from an outward point of view, one of the first things that strike us is that they are bundles of habits.
-- William James, Habit (1890) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #314]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreib764ygqobvzvcapoblac7mvuruyab7pm2v7ms2to2lucjdd4jgim@jpeg)
December 8, 2025 at 12:40 PM
When we look at living creatures from an outward point of view, one of the first things that strike us is that they are bundles of habits.
-- William James, Habit (1890) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #314]
-- William James, Habit (1890) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #314]
You must see for yourselves that it will be difficult to follow Peter Pan’s adventures unless you are familiar with the Kensington Gardens.
-- J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #308]
-- J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #308]
![You must see for yourselves that it will be difficult to follow Peter Pan’s adventures unless you are familiar with the Kensington Gardens.
-- J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #308]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreie6vhipozljy5wrcwjmeu4g2ufjevbkmxyrii2zev3pc55zoit74e@jpeg)
December 7, 2025 at 3:31 PM
You must see for yourselves that it will be difficult to follow Peter Pan’s adventures unless you are familiar with the Kensington Gardens.
-- J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #308]
-- J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #308]
Three young men stood together on a wharf one bright October day, awaiting the arrival of an ocean steamer with an impatience which found a vent in lively skirmishes with a small lad, who pervaded the premises like a will-o’-the-wisp, and afforded much amusement
![to the other groups assembled there.
-- Louisa May Alcott, Rose in Bloom 1876, 1914) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #298]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreig7kaf246ypj6wf2vtnjxbxc3jnvzmmpufiwn67nfbwwdgkbr6jpq@jpeg)
December 6, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Three young men stood together on a wharf one bright October day, awaiting the arrival of an ocean steamer with an impatience which found a vent in lively skirmishes with a small lad, who pervaded the premises like a will-o’-the-wisp, and afforded much amusement
On a bright December morning, long ago, two thinly-clad children were kneeling upon the bank of a frozen canal in Holland.
--Mary Mapes Dodge, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates (1865) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #283]
--Mary Mapes Dodge, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates (1865) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #283]
![On a bright December morning, long ago, two thinly-clad children were kneeling upon the bank of a frozen canal in Holland.
--Mary Mapes Dodge, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates (1865) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #283]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6fs6a45caj464xz3uyni76hw/bafkreibuk3wv5n45tono43qv5gqfych2zwmhrt4nw5sjszqajllasqxjku@jpeg)
December 5, 2025 at 12:51 PM
On a bright December morning, long ago, two thinly-clad children were kneeling upon the bank of a frozen canal in Holland.
--Mary Mapes Dodge, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates (1865) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #283]
--Mary Mapes Dodge, Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates (1865) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #283]
The plain man on a plain day wakes up, slowly or quickly according to his temperament, and greets the day in a mental posture which might be thus expressed in words: “Oh Lord! Another day! What a grind!”
-- Arnold Bennett, The Plain Man and His Wife (1913) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #272]
-- Arnold Bennett, The Plain Man and His Wife (1913) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #272]
December 4, 2025 at 12:48 PM
The plain man on a plain day wakes up, slowly or quickly according to his temperament, and greets the day in a mental posture which might be thus expressed in words: “Oh Lord! Another day! What a grind!”
-- Arnold Bennett, The Plain Man and His Wife (1913) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #272]
-- Arnold Bennett, The Plain Man and His Wife (1913) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #272]
Those two girls, Constance and Sophia Baines, paid no heed to the manifold interest of their situation, of which, indeed, they had never been conscious.
--Arnold Bennett, The Old Wives’ Tale (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #265]
--Arnold Bennett, The Old Wives’ Tale (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #265]
December 2, 2025 at 11:57 AM
Those two girls, Constance and Sophia Baines, paid no heed to the manifold interest of their situation, of which, indeed, they had never been conscious.
--Arnold Bennett, The Old Wives’ Tale (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #265]
--Arnold Bennett, The Old Wives’ Tale (1911) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #265]
Yes, he’s one of those men that don’t know how to manage.
— Arnold Bennett, How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #264]
— Arnold Bennett, How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #264]
December 1, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Yes, he’s one of those men that don’t know how to manage.
— Arnold Bennett, How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #264]
— Arnold Bennett, How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #264]
East or West, it matters not where, -- the story may, doubtless, indicate something of latitude and longitude as it proceeds, -- in the city of Mishaumok, lived Henderson Gartney, Esq., one of those American gentlemen of whom, if she were ever canonized, Martha of Bethany must be the patron saint,
November 30, 2025 at 1:41 PM
East or West, it matters not where, -- the story may, doubtless, indicate something of latitude and longitude as it proceeds, -- in the city of Mishaumok, lived Henderson Gartney, Esq., one of those American gentlemen of whom, if she were ever canonized, Martha of Bethany must be the patron saint,
There is one mind common to all individual men.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays (1865 & 1876) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #254]
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays (1865 & 1876) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #254]
November 29, 2025 at 1:10 PM
There is one mind common to all individual men.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays (1865 & 1876) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #254]
— Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays (1865 & 1876) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #254]
“I wonder when in the world you’re going to do anything, Rudolf?” said my brother’s wife..
--Anthony Hope, The Prisoner of Zenda (1896) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #242]
--Anthony Hope, The Prisoner of Zenda (1896) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #242]
November 28, 2025 at 12:34 PM
“I wonder when in the world you’re going to do anything, Rudolf?” said my brother’s wife..
--Anthony Hope, The Prisoner of Zenda (1896) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #242]
--Anthony Hope, The Prisoner of Zenda (1896) [Belle Waterbury Wood Collection #242]