Ancestor Quote by Ambrose Bierce

“A man is the sum of his ancestors; to reform him you must begin with a dead ape and work downward through a million graves.”

Ambrose Bierce

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Ancestor Ancestors Reform Ape Work Apes Dead Ape Graves Men Million Graves Millions Reform Sum Ancestors

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OBSESSED, p.p. Vexed by an evil spirit, like the Gadarene swine and other critics. Obsession was once more common than it is now. Arasthus…

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DECIDE, v.i. To succumb to the preponderance of one set of influences over another set.

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IMMORAL, adj. Inexpedient. Whatever in the long run and with regard to the greater number of instances men find to be generally inexpedient comes…

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REVIEW, v.t. To set your wisdom (holding not a doubt of it./ Although in truth there's neither bone nor skin to it)/ At work…

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CLOCK, n. A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time…

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RUBBISH, n. Worthless matter, such as the religions, philosophies, literatures, arts and sciences of the tribes infesting the regions lying due south from Boreaplas.

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There was never a genius who was not thought a fool until he disclosed himself; whereas he is a fool then only.

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Telephone, n. An invention of the devil which abrogates some of the advantages of making a disagreeable person keep his distance.

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WHANGDEPOOTENAWAH, n. In the Ojibwa tongue, disaster; an unexpected affliction that strikes hard.

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Jealous, adj. Unduly concerned about the preservation of that which can be lost only if not worth keeping.

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RIDICULE, n. Words designed to show that the person of whom they are uttered is devoid of the dignity of character distinguishing him who…

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Think twice before you speak to a friend in need

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Explore all 1,157 Ambrose Bierce quotes

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Food binds us to our roots as strongly as any song or poem. Many of us have learned more about our ancestors in the…

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Whereas our ancestors (not of choice) were the first successful cultivators of the wilds of America, we their descendants feel ourselves entitled to participate…

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Going where no man has gone before is more difficult than it sounds. Our cousins and ancestors were no less curious than we are,…

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I use the phrase 'sibling society' to suggest a culture fundamentally without fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers, or ancestors. The thinking is horizontal.

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“A very long time ago, some 2.5 million years B.C., the mother of human species as we know it, our ultimate ancestor, appeared in…

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High birth is an accident, not a virtue.

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Southerners, whose ancestors a hundred years ago knew the horrors of a homeland devastated by war, are particularly determined that war shall never come…

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