Цитаты из книги «The "Goldfish"»

We have grown literally afraid to be poor. We despise any one who elects to be poor in order to simplify and save his inner life. We have lost the power of even imagining what the ancient idealization of poverty could have meant—the liberation from material attachments; the unbribed soul; the manlier indifference; the paying our way by what we are or do, and not by what we have; the right to fling away our life at any moment irresponsibly—the more athletic trim, in short the moral fighting shape…. It is certain that the prevalent fear of poverty among the educated class is the worst moral disease from which our civilization suffers." William James, p. 313.

not worth striving for. I put to myself the question: Were they worth striving for? Really, I did not seem to be getting much satisfaction out of them. I began to be worried. Was not this an attitude of age? Was I not an old man, perhaps, regardless of my youthful face?

idealization of poverty could have meant—the liberation from material attachments; the unbribed soul; the

not even a suggestion of a bald spot

my father's heroic death at Gettysburg; in fact I

whose sensitive, quivering, aristocratic nature

necktie were frayed or my sleeves too short.

stretched out on glass slabs to be rubbed down with salt and scrubbed

breathless struggle to attain some goal

grinned and clapped to deceive