--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No sooner does a great man depart, and…" description: "\"No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character as public property, than a crowd of little men rushes towards it. There they are gathered to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png" --- # No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character… ![“No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character as public property, than a crowd of little men rushes towards it. There they are gathered together, blinking up to it with such vision as they have, scanning it from afar, hovering round it this way and that, each cunningly endeavoring, by…” quote by Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png) > “No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character as public property, than a crowd of little men rushes towards it. There they are gathered together, blinking up to it with such vision as they have, scanning it from afar, hovering round it this way and that, each cunningly endeavoring, by all arts, to catch some reflex of it in the little mirror of himself.” [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When a great person dies, many lesser individuals try to imitate or claim his legacy, often superficially and for self‑interest. **In simple terms:** People copy famous figures after they die. Key Takeaway Beware of shallow imitation. Themes leadership legacy imitation Mood critical reflective Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - political speeches - corporate branding - personal branding - historical analysis Key Concepts hero worship social mimicry Questions to Reflect On - How do you distinguish genuine tribute from self‑serving mimicry? - What drives the desire to claim another’s legacy? A Different Perspective Imitation may lack depth and authenticity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afar/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Biographies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biographies/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Character Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character-public-1809551/) [Crowd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crowd/) [Crowd Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crowd-little-1446162/) [Crowds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crowds/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Gathered Blinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gathered-blinking-3033226/) [Great man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-man/) [Great men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-men/) [Hovering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hovering/) [Little man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-man/) [Little Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-men-437194/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mirrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mirrors/) [Property](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/property/) [Reflexes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflexes/) [Rounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rounds/) [Scanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scanning/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [A preacher who is too big for a little crowd would be too little for a big crowd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-havner/a-preacher-who-is-too-big-for-a-little-crowd-would-be-too-little-for/) [Vance Havner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-havner/) > [The crowd can be a little different in some places. For example, in Europe, people tend to be very respectful. They try not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-demarco/the-crowd-can-be-a-little-different-in-some-places-for-example-in/) [Mac DeMarco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-demarco/) > [The crowd is made of little gods, and there is still no heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/the-crowd-is-made-of-little-gods-and-there-is-still-no-heaven/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [Who would wish to be among the commonplace crowd of the little famous - who are each individually lost in a throng made up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/who-would-wish-to-be-among-the-commonplace-crowd-of-the-little-famous/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [A great man shows his greatness by the way he treats little men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/a-great-man-shows-his-greatness-by-the-way-he-treats-little-men/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [If you're playing a historical character that's in the public consciousness, then obviously you've got to make an effort to look like that person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colm-meaney/if-you-re-playing-a-historical-character-that-s-in-the-public/) [Colm Meaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colm-meaney/) > [The Ricky that the public see, whether it be on screen as a character, in public, or on social media, is very outgoing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-whittle/the-ricky-that-the-public-see-whether-it-be-on-screen-as-a-character/) [Ricky Whittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-whittle/) > [I step into a character in my public life. People who don't make that distinction are dooooomed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-rigg/i-step-into-a-character-in-my-public-life-people-who-don-t-make-that/) [Diana Rigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-rigg/) > [The public character of every public servant is legitimate subject of discussion, and his fitness or unfitness for office may be fairly canvassed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-babbage/the-public-character-of-every-public-servant-is-legitimate-subject-of/) [Charles Babbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-babbage/) > [Politicians tend to live "in character" and many a public figure has come to imitate the journalism that describes him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-lippmann/politicians-tend-to-live-in-character-and-many-a-public-figure-has/) [Walter Lippmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-lippmann/) > [I hated being a character to the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-elordi/i-hated-being-a-character-to-the-public/) [Jacob Elordi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-elordi/) > [With respect to duels, indeed, I have my own ideas. Few things in this so surprising world strike me with more surprise. Two little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/with-respect-to-duels-indeed-i-have-my-own-ideas-few-things-in-this/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Essence of newspaper is the large size. You are a reader you're an eagle flying over the desert, you're scanning. You see the rabbit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russ-wilcox/essence-of-newspaper-is-the-large-size-you-are-a-reader-you-re-an/) [Russ Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russ-wilcox/) > [When you write a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you’re done, you have to step back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/when-you-write-a-book-you-spend-day-after-day-scanning-and/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“What is different, and troubling, is that skimming is becoming our dominant mode of reading. Once a means to an end, a way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-carr/what-is-different-and-troubling-is-that-skimming-is-becoming-our/) [Nicholas Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-carr/) ## More by Thomas Carlyle > [O thou that pinest in the imprisonment of the Actual, and criest bitterly to the gods for a kingdom wherein to rule and create,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/o-thou-that-pinest-in-the-imprisonment-of-the-actual-and-criest/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Whose school-hours are all the days and nights of our existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/whose-school-hours-are-all-the-days-and-nights-of-our-existence/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [No sadder proof can be given by a man of his own littleness than disbelief in great men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sadder-proof-can-be-given-by-a-man-of-his-own-littleness-than/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such: it is an accident, not a property, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/fame-we-may-understand-is-no-sure-test-of-merit-but-only-a/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The sincere alone can recognize sincerity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-sincere-alone-can-recognize-sincerity/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Be a pattern to others, and then all will go well; for as a whole city is affected by the licentious passions and vices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/be-a-pattern-to-others-and-then-all-will-go-well-for-as-a-whole-city/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The glory of a workman, still more of a master workman, that he does his work well, ought to be his most precious possession;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-glory-of-a-workman-still-more-of-a-master-workman-that-he-does/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [All human things do require to have an ideal in them; to have some soul in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/all-human-things-do-require-to-have-an-ideal-in-them-to-have-some/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Insurrection, never so necessary, is a most sad necessity; and governors who wait for that to instruct them are surely getting into the fatalest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/insurrection-never-so-necessary-is-a-most-sad-necessity-and-governors/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [What is philosophy but a continual battle against custom?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/what-is-philosophy-but-a-continual-battle-against-custom/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Let Time and Chance combine, combine! Let Time and Chance combine! The fairest love from heaven above, That love of yours was mine, My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/let-time-and-chance-combine-combine-let-time-and-chance-combine-the/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Thought will not work except in silence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/thought-will-not-work-except-in-silence/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The public is anold woman.Let her maunderand mumble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-public-is-anold-woman-let-her-maunderand-mumble/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [Does not every true man feel that he is himself made higher by doing reverence to what is really above him?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/does-not-every-true-man-feel-that-he-is-himself-made-higher-by-doing/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [The press is the fourth estate of the realm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/the-press-is-the-fourth-estate-of-the-realm/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) [Explore all 917 Thomas Carlyle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) ## More Afar quotes > [The Son of God goes forth to war,A kingly crown to gain;His blood red banner streams afar:Who follows in His train?Who best can drink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-heber/the-son-of-god-goes-forth-to-war-a-kingly-crown-to-gain-his-blood-red/) [Reginald Heber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-heber/) > [“Can I like you from afar?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-bernardino/can-i-like-you-from-afar/) [Bianca Bernardino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-bernardino/) > [Religion exalts mystery as an unknowable secret that must be sealed in glass like the corpse of an enchanted princess and fearfully worshipped from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lon-milo-duquette/religion-exalts-mystery-as-an-unknowable-secret-that-must-be-sealed/) [Lon Milo DuQuette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lon-milo-duquette/) > [Ah, my brother, it is a far harder thing, and it is afar higher proof of a thorough-going, persistent, Christian principle woven into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/ah-my-brother-it-is-a-far-harder-thing-and-it-is-afar-higher-proof-of/) [Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/) > [Blessed is the servant who loves his brother as much when he is sick and useless as when he is well and an be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/blessed-is-the-servant-who-loves-his-brother-as-much-when-he-is-sick/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Last but not least my family. My brother Tony, I love you. Thank you for beating me up when I was a kid. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/last-but-not-least-my-family-my-brother-tony-i-love-you-thank-you-for/) [Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/) > [I wasn't a 'Battlestar' fan, but I had a lot of respect for the show. I had a lot of friends who worked on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-roiz/i-wasn-t-a-battlestar-fan-but-i-had-a-lot-of-respect-for-the-show-i/) [Sasha Roiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-roiz/) > [Kindle the taper like the steadfast star Ablaze on evening's forehead o'er the earth, And add each night a lustre till afar An eightfold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-lazarus/kindle-the-taper-like-the-steadfast-star-ablaze-on-evening-s-forehead/) [Emma Lazarus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-lazarus/) > [Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; The Soul that rises with us, our life's Star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/our-birth-is-but-a-sleep-and-a-forgetting-the-soul-that-rises-with-us-2/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [There is so much more to the things that we think we know from afar. The close you get the more complex it is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meiselas/there-is-so-much-more-to-the-things-that-we-think-we-know-from-afar/) [Susan Meiselas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meiselas/) > [There is good government when those who are near are made happy, and when those who are afar are attracted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/there-is-good-government-when-those-who-are-near-are-made-happy-and/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [I like Stella McCartney, Chloe, Alexander McQueen, Aaron Featherstone, normal Chanel if I can ever afford it, I'd be wearing that all the time!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-snow/i-like-stella-mccartney-chloe-alexander-mcqueen-aaron-featherstone/) [Brittany Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-snow/) > [The New England Patriots have always been a special organization and I've always watched from afar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-moss/the-new-england-patriots-have-always-been-a-special-organization-and/) [Randy Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-moss/) > [Time past, present, and to come, as also depth and height, near and afar off, are all one in God, one comprehensibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jakob-bohme/time-past-present-and-to-come-as-also-depth-and-height-near-and-afar/) [Jakob Bohme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jakob-bohme/) > [In the glory which overhangs Palestine afar off, we imagine emotions which never come, when we tread the soil and walk over the hallowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bayard-taylor/in-the-glory-which-overhangs-palestine-afar-off-we-imagine-emotions/) [Bayard Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bayard-taylor/) [Browse all 212 Afar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afar/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character as public property, than a crowd of little men rushes towards it. There they are gathered together, blinking up to it with such vision as they have, scanning it from afar, hovering round it this way and that, each cunningly endeavoring, by all arts, to catch some reflex of it in the little mirror of himself.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Carlyle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-leave-his-character-as-public/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Afar" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-leave-his-character-as-public/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a49/thomas-carlyle-207_afar_no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-le_322105.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No sooner does a great man depart, and leave his character as public property, than a crowd of little men…” — Thomas Carlyle", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Thomas Carlyle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "No sooner does a great man...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-leave-his-character-as-public/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/no-sooner-does-a-great-man-depart-and-leave-his-character-as-public/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```