"I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time."
"Buck did not read the newspapers, or he would have known that trouble was brewing, not alone for himself, but for every tide-water dog, strong of muscle and with warm, long hair, from Puget Sound to San Diego."
3 likes
Source: Jack London (2016). “Jack London Six Pack”, p.7, Lulu.com
About the author
Same author
More quotes by Jack London
"Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but sometimes, playing a poor hand well."
"As for the primitive, I hark back to it because we are still very primitive. How many thousands of years of culture, think you, have rubbed and polished at our raw edges? One probably; at the best, no more than two. And that takes us back to screaming savagery, when, gross of body and deed, we drank blood from the skulls of our enemies, and hailed as highest paradise the orgies and carnage of Valhalla."
"You can't wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club."
"Show me a man with a tattoo and I'll show you a man with an interesting past."
"The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time."