“We should not plan and then try to make circumstances fit those plans. Instead we should make plans fit the circumstances.”
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Martin Walser
Martin Johannes Walser was a German writer, known especially as a novelist. He began his career as journalist for Süddeutscher Rundfunk, where he wrote and directed audio plays. He was a member of Group 47 from 1953 on.
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culture · German writer (1927–2023) · writer · novelist · playwright · screenwriter · journalist · director · also Martin Walser, Martin Johannes Walser, Walser
Born 24 March 1927 · Died 28 July 2023 · Q57387
98 published statements · 0 followers
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2026· 37 entries
“If you are unsure what to do, it is best to do nothing at all.”
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“Freud was way off base in considering sex the fundamental motivation. The ruling passion in men is minding each other's business.”
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“Nobody can fully understand another person's hardship or suffering.”
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“Many a time… from a bad beginning great friendships have sprung up.”
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“The only man I know who behaves sensibly is my tailor; he takes my measurements anew each time he sees me. The rest go on with their old measurements and expect me to fit them.”
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“Why wantonly proclaim one's own disgrace, or expose the faults or weaknesses of one's kindred or people?”
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“In case of need relatives usually help each other more than strangers. The bonds of relationship are more binding than other bonds.”
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“The coward calls himself cautious, the miser thrifty.”
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“We know the truth, not only by the reason, but also by the heart.”
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“What's drinking? A mere pause from thinking!”
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“Do not pin all your hopes on something you may not attain, because you could end up with nothing.”
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“All that is necessary to break the spell of inertia and frustration is this: Act as if it were impossible to fail. That is the talisman, the formula, the command of right about face which turns us from failure to success.”
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“Indeed, I do not envy your fortune; I rather am surprised at it.”
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“Do not trust gifts or favors if they come from an enemy.”
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“So are the men of this world: They must have all their good things now; they cannot stay till the next year, that is, until the next world, for their portion of good. That proverb, 'A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,' is of more authority with them than are all the divine testimonies of the good of the world to come.”
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“Do not feel sure or rejoice noticing a favorable sign. The appearance of a single sign of a favorable event is not yet a definite indication of its coming. It may be an unrelated, sporadic appearance.”
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“The man who thinks before he acts, is most likely to act with discretion, and have no future cause to repent of his conduct; but he who acts blindly, without any foresight, will probably suffer for his rashness.”
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“As one nail by strength drives out another, So the remembrance of my former love Is by a newer object quite forgotten.”
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“Don’t shortchange the future, because of fear in the present.”
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“He is no wise man that will quit a certainty for an uncertainty.”
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“Friendship ... flourishes not so much by kindnesses as by sincerity.”
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“Speak boldly, and speak truly, shame the devil.”
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“The truth is, that most men want knowledge, not for itself, but for the superiority which knowledge confers; and the means they employ to secure this superiority, are as wrong as the ultimate object, for no man can ever end with being superior, who will not begin with being inferior.”
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“Cheat me in the Price, but not in the Goods.”
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“This proverb imitates that an inbred Philauty runs through the whole Race of Flefh and Blood. It blinds the Underftanding, perverts the Judgment and depraves the Reafon of the Diftinguishers of Truth and Falfity.”
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“You can always tell someone to go to hell tomorrow.”
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“Drinking makes such fools of people, and people are such fools to begin with, that it's compounding a felony.”
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“Wisdom makes but a slow defense against trouble, though at last a sure one.”
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“Trust not an Enemy, because thou hast done him good Offices: for Men are naturally more prone to revenge Injuries, than to requite Kindnesses.”
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“He that advised thee not to let the Sun set in thine anger, did not command thee to trust a deceiving Enemy next Morning.”
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“Gutenberg, your printing press has been violated by this evil book, Mein Kampf!”
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“It is considered contemptible to defy the rule of solidarity by revealing facts harmful to the group one belongs to.”
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“Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.”
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“People who make the most or the loudest threats are the least likely to take action.”
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“I think that world literature is about losers. That”
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Public attention spiked: 3,753 Wikipedia readers in one day, 129.4× the usual 29, with 1 article edits.
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2023· 2 entries
Died 2023-07-28.
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Walser died in Nussdorf on 26 July 2023, at age 96.
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2015· 1 entry
Awarded Friedrich Nietzsche Prize (2015).
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2007· 18 entries
“The best way to deal with an opponent is to fight back with similar weapons or tactics.”
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“People who know they have done wrong reveal their guilt by the things they say or the way they interpret what other people say.”
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“Something you have for certain now is of more value than something better you may get, especially if you risk losing what you have in order to get it.”
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“Precocious talent or premature success is often shortlived.”
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“Hesitation or procastination may lead to trouble or disaster.”
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“Those who act boldly or courageously are most likely to succeed.”
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“Good health is a valuable asset, worth more than any amount of money.”
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“Drastic action is called for – and justified – when you find yourself in a particularly difficult situation.”
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“You are more likely to win if you take the initiative and make an attack rather than preparing to defend yourself.”
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“Do not reproach another person for something of which you yourself are guilty .”
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“It is important to do things in the right or natural order.”
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“People who eavesdrop on the conversations of others risk hearing unfavorable comments about themselves; used as a warning or reprimand.”
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“Hope tells a flattering tale, Delusive, vain and hollow. Ah! let not hope prevail, Lest disappointment follow.”
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“Problems and misfortunes along the way can be forgotten as long as the end is satisfactory.”
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Gave many of his manuscripts to the Deutsches Literaturarchiv Marbach for preservation
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The German political magazine Cicero placed Walser second on its list of the 500 most important German intellectuals, behind Pope Benedict XVI and ahead of Nobel Prize winner Günter Grass
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“Small organizations or insignificant people tend to be swallowed up or destroyed by those that are greater and more powerful.”
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“It is often wise not to quit an undertaking already begun.”
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2004· 2 entries
Walser's works were published by Rowohlt, Reinbek
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Walser left his long-time publisher Suhrkamp Verlag for Rowohlt Verlag after the death of the Suhrkamp director Siegfried Unseld
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2002· 3 entries
Awarded Alemannischer Literaturpreis (2002).
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Awarded Julius Campe award (2002).
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Walser's portrayal of the literary critic Marcel Reich-Ranicki in his novel Tod eines Kritikers ("Death of a Critic") was regarded as antisemitic
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2000· 1 entry
“There is no such thing as a lazy person; he is either sick or uninspired.”
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1998· 2 entries
Awarded Peace Prize of the German Publishers' and Booksellers' Association (1998).
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Walser was awarded the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade
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1997· 1 entry
“Working hard for others one may neglect one's own needs or the needs of those closest to him.”
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1996· 1 entry
Awarded Friedrich-Hölderlin-Preis (1996).
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1995· 1 entry
Awarded Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art (1995).
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1994· 1 entry
“Children observe daily and — in their behavior — often follow the example of their parents.”
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1993· 1 entry
Awarded Franz Nabl Prize (1993).
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1990· 3 entries
Awarded Literature Award of the Bavarian Academy of the Fine Arts (1990).
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Won Carl Zuckmayer Medal (1990).
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Awarded Ricarda-Huch-Preis (1990).
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1988· 1 entry
Gave a series of lectures titled "Speeches about One's Own Country" in which he made clear that he considered the division of Germany a painful and intolerable gulf
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1987· 1 entry
Awarded Friedrich-Schiedel-Literaturpreis (1987).
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1981· 4 entries
Awarded Honorary Award of the Heinrich Heine Society (1981).
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Awarded Georg Büchner Prize (1981).
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And the Peace Prize of the German Publishers' Association in 1998
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The Ricarda Huch Prize of Darmstadt in 1990, the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade in 1998, and the Friedrich Nietzsche Prize in 2015 for his life's achievements, among many other awards
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1980· 2 entries
Awarded Schiller Memorial Prize (1980).
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Awarded Order of Merit of Baden-Württemberg (1980).
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1968· 1 entry
“Papa Hegel he say that all we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history. I know people who can't even learn from what happened this morning. Hegel must have been taking the long view.”
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1967· 1 entry
Awarded Bodensee-Literaturpreis (1967).
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1964· 1 entry
Walser attended the Frankfurt Auschwitz Trial, and was involved in protests against the Vietnam War
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1962· 1 entry
Awarded Gerhart Hauptmann prize (1962).
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1961· 1 entry
Was the first literary writer to support the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) in an election campaign
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1960· 1 entry
Das Einhorn (The Unicorn) in 1966 and ending with Der Sturz (The Fall) in 1973
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1957· 1 entry
Awarded Hermann-Hesse-Preis (1957).
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1953· 1 entry
Walser was regularly invited to conferences of the Group 47, which was focused on literature for a new democratic Germany
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1950· 3 entries
Walser married Katharina ("Käthe") Neuner-Jehle
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In 1950, Walser married Katharina ("Käthe") Neuner-Jehle.
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Walser married Katharina "Käthe" Neuner-Jehle; the couple had four daughters
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1927· 1 entry
Born 1927-03-24.
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1894· 1 entry
“A corrupting influence often spreads from a leader to the rest of the organization group.”
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1886· 1 entry
“Every man loves well what is like to himself.”
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1845· 1 entry
“It is better to make some confession, or pay a little deference to others, our neighbors, friends, acquaintances, and especially our superiors, rather than lose our credit or break friendship.”
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1818· 1 entry
“Present afflictions may tend to our future good.”
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