Not to be born is, past all prizing, best.

μὴ φῦναι τὸν ἅπαντα νικᾷ λόγον

Sophocles

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Topic

Being born The human condition

Author

Sophocles

Source

Oedipus at Colonus

Medium

Play

Genre

Tragic play Greek theater

Language

Greek

Time

406 BC 400s BC 5th century BC

Era

Classical antiquity

Occupation

Playwright Writer

From

Greece Europe Ancient Greece

Authentication Score 2

Original Citation

Sophocles. Οἰδίπους ἐπὶ Κολωνῷ [Oedipus at Colonus]. 401 BC, Festival of Dionysus, Athens, Greece.

Current Citation

Sophocles. "Oedipus at Colonus." The Three Theban Plays: Antigone, Oedipus the King, Odeipus at Colonus, translated by Robert Fagles. Penguin Classics, 2000.

Illustrated Quote

A quote by Sophocles about being born: “Not to be born is, past all prizing, best.”
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A quote by Sophocles about being born: “Not to be born is, past all prizing, best.”
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A quote by Sophocles about being born: “Not to be born is, past all prizing, best.”
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Related Quotes

Below are one or more quotes that share at least one tag with the quote at the top of the page

Another quote about The human condition

The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.

Henry David Thoreau

Walden

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More information about this quote
Topic
The masses The human condition

Author

Henry David Thoreau
Source
Economy Walden
Genre
Autobiography and memoir
Language
English
Time
1854 1850s 19th century
Authentication Score 3
Original Citation

Thoreau, Henry David. "Economy." Walden; or, Life in the Woods. Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1854.

Current Citation

Thoreau, Henry David. "Economy." Walden and Civil Disobedience. Signet, 2012.

Another quote from the 5th century BC

One cannot step twice into the same river, for the waters are continually flowing on.

Heraclitus

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More information about this quote
Topic
The only constant is change Change Rivers

Author

Heraclitus
Medium
Presocratic fragment Fragment
Genre
Philosophical literature
Statement Type
Paradox
Language
Greek
Time
5th century BC
Era
Classical antiquity
Authentication Score 2
Original Citation

Heraclitus. Fragments. 5th century BC, DK B12.

Current Citation

Heraclitus. "Heraclitus of Ephesus." The First Philosophers: The Presocratics and Sophists, translated by Robin Waterfield. Oxford University Press, 2009, DK B12.

Another quote from Classical antiquity

And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.

Genesis 3:13-14

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More information about this quote
Topic
Adam and Eve Original sin Temptation Snakes The devil
Source
Genesis The Bible
Medium
Scripture
Genre
Religious literature
Language
Hebrew
Time
1405 BC 1400s BC 15th century BC
Era
Classical antiquity
Authentication Score 3
Citation

The Holy Bible: The King James Version. 1611. (Genesis 3:13-14).

Another quote originally in Greek

I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.

Jesus

John 8:12

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More information about this quote
Topic
Nature of Jesus Jesus
Speaker
Jesus
Source
Gospel of John The Bible
Medium
Scripture
Genre
Religious literature
Language
Greek
Time
90 90s 1st century
Era
Classical antiquity
Authentication Score 3
Citation

The Holy Bible: The King James Version. 1611. (John 8:12.)