--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's tragic how few people ever 'possess…" description: "\"It's tragic how few people ever 'possess their souls' before they die. 'Nothing is more rare in any man', says Emerson, 'than an act of his own.' It is..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/063/oscar-wilde-16_life-is_it-s-tragic-how-few-people-ever-possess_2080997.jpg" --- # It's tragic how few people ever 'possess their souls'… ![“It's tragic how few people ever 'possess their souls' before they die. 'Nothing is more rare in any man', says Emerson, 'than an act of his own.' It is quite true. Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their life is a mimicry, their passions a quotation.” quote by Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/063/oscar-wilde-16_life-is_it-s-tragic-how-few-people-ever-possess_2080997.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/063/oscar-wilde-16_life-is_it-s-tragic-how-few-people-ever-possess_2080997.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/063/oscar-wilde-16_life-is_it-s-tragic-how-few-people-ever-possess_2080997.jpg) > “It's tragic how few people ever 'possess their souls' before they die. 'Nothing is more rare in any man', says Emerson, 'than an act of his own.' It is quite true. Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their life is a mimicry, their passions a quotation.” [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Few truly own their individuality; most imitate others' thoughts and passions. **In simple terms:** Most people copy others instead of being themselves. Key Takeaway Cultivate authentic self-expression. Themes individuality authenticity conformity Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal decisions - creative work - social interactions - education Key Concepts selfhood philosophy of self Questions to Reflect On - What does 'possessing your soul' mean to you? - How can you resist copying others? A Different Perspective Societal pressure can suppress true self. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mimicry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mimicry/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Souls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/souls/) [Tragic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragic/) ## Related quotes > [We know only that we are living in these bodies and have a vague idea, because we have heard it, and because our faith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/we-know-only-that-we-are-living-in-these-bodies-and-have-a-vague-idea/) [Teresa of Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/) > [Great statesmen seem to direct and rule by a sort of power to put themselves in the place of the nation over which they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woodrow-wilson/great-statesmen-seem-to-direct-and-rule-by-a-sort-of-power-to-put/) [Woodrow Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woodrow-wilson/) > [Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/most-people-are-other-people-their-thoughts-are-someone-else-s/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [If we're always guided by other people's thoughts, what's the point in having our own?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/if-we-re-always-guided-by-other-people-s-thoughts-what-s-the-point-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“The mimicry of passion is the most intolerable of all poses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-mimicry-of-passion-is-the-most-intolerable-of-all-poses/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [It is no secret that souls sometimes die in a person and are replaced by others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-shacochis/it-is-no-secret-that-souls-sometimes-die-in-a-person-and-are-replaced-2/) [Bob Shacochis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-shacochis/) > [“When Great Trees Fall When great trees fall, rocks on distant hills shudder, lions hunker down in tall grasses, and even elephants lumber after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/when-great-trees-fall-when-great-trees-fall-rocks-on-distant-hills/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Is that all souls are for? For when we die?" "No. They're for living, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/is-that-all-souls-are-for-for-when-we-die-no-they-re-for-living-too/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [The world was a world of dreaming souls who could not die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-cronin/the-world-was-a-world-of-dreaming-souls-who-could-not-die/) [Justin Cronin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-cronin/) > [And when great souls die, after a period peace blooms, slowly and always irregularly. Spaces fill with a kind of soothing electric vibration. Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/and-when-great-souls-die-after-a-period-peace-blooms-slowly-and/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [“It is no secret that souls sometimes die in a person and are replaced by others. —Fernando Pessoa”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-shacochis/it-is-no-secret-that-souls-sometimes-die-in-a-person-and-are-replaced/) [Bob Shacochis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-shacochis/) > [“It's no secret, of course, that souls sometimes die within a person and are replaced by others — especially with age.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludmilla-petrushevskaya/it-s-no-secret-of-course-that-souls-sometimes-die-within-a-person-and/) [Ludmilla Petrushevskaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludmilla-petrushevskaya/) > [Souls never die, but always on quitting one abode pass to another. All things change, nothing perishes. The soul passes hither and thither, occupying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pythagoras/souls-never-die-but-always-on-quitting-one-abode-pass-to-another-all/) [Pythagoras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pythagoras/) > [If the flame inside you goes out, the souls that are next to you will die of cold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-mauriac/if-the-flame-inside-you-goes-out-the-souls-that-are-next-to-you-will/) [Francois Mauriac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-mauriac/) > [Ah, the souls of those that die Are but sunbeams lifted higher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/ah-the-souls-of-those-that-die-are-but-sunbeams-lifted-higher/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) ## More by Oscar Wilde > [How else but through a broken heart may Lord Christ enter in?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/how-else-but-through-a-broken-heart-may-lord-christ-enter-in/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The books that the world calls immoral are the books that show the world its own shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-books-that-the-world-calls-immoral-are-the-books-that-show-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Bachelors should be heavily taxed. 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