Magazine Posts

André Paul Guillaume Gide (1869 - 1951)  French author known for his fiction as well as his autobiographical works. He authored more than fifty books and he was the winner of the 1947 Nobel Prize in Literature. Gide was brought up in isolated conditions in Normandy and became a prolific writer at an early age. He published his first novel, "The Notebooks of André Walter" (French: Les Cahiers d'André Walter) at the age of twenty-one.

Aristotle (Aristotélēs, pronounced (aristotélɛːs) (384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. One of the greatest intellectual figures of Western history. He was the author of a philosophical and scientific system that became the framework and vehicle for both Christian Scholasticism and medieval Islamic philosophy. Aristotle’s intellectual range was vast, covering most of the sciences and many of the arts. Aristotelian concepts remain embedded in Western thinking. More

Jorge Luis Borges'  (August 24, 1899–June 14, 1986) in “Borges and I” — his classic parable of selfhood, exploring the divide between private person and public persona that each of us must live with and live into. It appears in Labyrinths (public library) — a collection of Borges’s stories, essays, parables, and other writings, originally published in 1962  More at The Marginalian ➜ 

Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 - April 15, 1865)

Edward R. Murrow (1908 – 1965) was an American broadcast journalist and war correspondent. He first gained prominence during World War II with a series of live radio broadcasts from Europe. Murrow was co-producer of "Hear It Now", an authoritative hour-long, radio weekly news digest. He moved on to television with, "See It Now" series, which helped lead to the censure of Senator Joseph McCarthy. Murrow is considered one of journalism's greatest figures. 
Quote source: Edward Murrow's last public speech in October 1964, receiving a "Family of Man" Humanity award

 "Friendship is the sunshine of life — the quiet radiance that makes our lives not only livable but worth living. (This is why we must use the utmost care in how we wield the word friend".... Read more at the Marginalian

Ernesto Roque Sabato, (1911 - 2011) Argentine novelist, essayist, painter and physicist. He earned a doctorate in physics and started teaching theoretical physics. He received many prestigious prizes for his writings. In 1940, he began to contribute newspaper articles stating his opposition to the Juan Perón government. As a result he was removed from his teaching posts. He was appointed In 1983 to investigate the fate of those who disappeared during Argentina's military rule. His commission's comprehensive account was later used to prosecute nine members of the military establishment. 

Socrates (C 470–399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no texts and is known mainly through the posthumous accounts, written as dialogues, of classical writers, particularly his students Plato and Xenophon.  Contradictory accounts of Socrates make a reconstruction of his philosophy nearly impossible, a situation known as the Socratic problem. Socrates was a polarizing figure in Athenian society. In 399 BC, he was accused of impiety and corrupting the youth. After a trial that lasted a day, he was sentenced to death. He spent his last day in prison, refusing offers to help him escape.

JOHN O'DONOHUE (1956 - 2008) was an Irish poet, philosopher and scholar, a native Gaelic speaker. He wrote numerous international best-selling books including: Anam Cara, Beauty, Eternal Echoes, and Benedictus: A Book of Blessings- Published in the US as To Bless the Space Between Us. John O'Donohue Official Website.

Quote source: Excerpt from John O’Donohue's book "Anam Cara" (p17)

Frederick Douglass (1817 - 1895) - Frederick Augustus Washington  American abolitionist, social reformer, writer, orator and statesman. Born a slave, he escaped from slavery in Maryland and became a national leader of the abolitionist movement. Known for his oratory and antislavery writings. He was described by abolitionists in his time as a living counterexample to slaveholders' arguments that slaves lacked the intellectual capacity to function as independent American citizens. Douglass wrote three autobiographies, describing his experiences as a slave and later times of his life. Douglass also actively supported women's suffrage, and held several public offices.

"In The Story of Ferdinand (public library), a gentle-souled young misfit bull sits out the perpetual head-butting by which his peers hone their bull-skills, choosing instead to smell the flowers under his favorite cork tree in solitude. His mother, at first worried about his bullness, recognizes her son’s difference and trusts that he would find his way" And so he does..... Read more

Charles Kingsley (1819 – 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the working men's college, and forming labour cooperatives, which failed, but encouraged later working reforms.
Source: Britannica