You are not judged by the height you have risen, but from the depth you have climbed.

These were choice documents to me... They gave tongue to interesting thoughts of my own soul, which had frequently flashed through my mind, and died away for want of utterance.

It was unlawful, as well as unsafe, to teach a slave to read.

It is better to be part of a great whole than to be the whole of a small part.

Though conscious of the difficulty of learning without a teacher, I set out with high hope, and a fixed purpose, at whatever cost of trouble, to learn how to read.

Shields Green was not one to shrink from hardships or dangers. He was a man of few words, and his speech was singularly broken; but his courage and self-respect made him quite a dignified character.

I do not think much of the good luck theory of self-made men. It is worth but little attention and has no practical value.