“Not that I would not, if I could, be both handsome ...and well-dressed, and a great athlete, and make a million a year, be a wit, a bon-vivant, and a lady-killer, as well as a philosopher; a philanthropist, statesman, warrior, and African explorer, as well as a ‘tone poet’ and saint. But the thing is simply impossible…Such different characters may conceivably at the outset of life be alike possible to a man. But to make any one of them actual, the rest must more or less be suppressed. So the seeker of his truest, strongest, deepest self must review the list carefully, and pick out the one on which to stake his salvation. All other selves thereupon become unreal…”

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About William James

American philosopher and psychologist

William James was an American philosopher and psychologist. He lived in the late 19th century and is often called the father of American psychology. He has 152 quotes on the site. He was the first educator to teach a psychology course in the United States. James is regarded as one of the leading thinkers of his time and as one of the most influential philosophers. His work helped shape the study of psychology in America.

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Books by William James

The Varieties of Religious Experience

1902

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Pluralistic Universe

1909

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