100+ Ways to Add a Quote in an Essay: Proven Copywriting Tips & Examples

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” – Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

“All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” – Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“Call me Ishmael.” – Herman Melville, Moby Dick

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” – J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit

“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” – Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

“To be, or not to be: that is the question.” – William Shakespeare, Hamlet

“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done.” – Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me.” – Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre

“The world is too much with us; late and soon, Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers.” – William Wordsworth

“Do I dare disturb the universe?” – T.S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” – Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere’s Fan

“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation…” – Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address

“Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” – John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address

“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

“Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” – Abraham Lincoln

“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.” – Winston Churchill

“Give me liberty, or give me death!” – Patrick Henry

“We shall fight on the beaches…” – Winston Churchill

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” – Neil Armstrong

“Where liberty dwells, there is my country.” – Benjamin Franklin

“Democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others.” – Winston Churchill

“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Lord Acton

“I think, therefore I am.” – René Descartes

“The unexamined life is not worth living.” – Socrates

“He who has a why to live can bear almost any how.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Everything that exists is logical.” – Gottlob Frege

“Man is nothing else but what he makes of himself.” – Jean-Paul Sartre

“Happiness is the highest good.” – Aristotle

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle

“God is dead.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

“Know thyself.” – Inscription at the Temple of Apollo, Delphi

“Morality is the herd instinct in the individual.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

“Existence precedes essence.” – Jean-Paul Sartre

“Imagination is more important than knowledge.” – Albert Einstein

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.” – Albert Einstein

“Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.” – Carl Sagan

“We are made of star-stuff.” – Carl Sagan

“Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.” – Theodosius Dobzhansky

“The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.” – Neil deGrasse Tyson

“We float on a hidden ocean of silence.” – David Bohm

“The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you.” – Neil deGrasse Tyson

“Observation and logic lead to the scientific method.” – Richard Feynman

“The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena.” – Carl Sagan

“We don’t know what we don’t know.” – Donald Rumsfeld (often cited in scientific humility)

“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality.” – Carl Sagan

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” – Theodore Roosevelt

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts.” – Winston Churchill

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going.” – Sam Levenson

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” – Wayne Gretzky

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela

“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow is our doubts of today.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.” – Tim Notke

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” – Arthur Ashe

“Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” – Steve Jobs

“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t—you’re right.” – Henry Ford

“The harder I work, the luckier I get.” – Gary Player

“I’m not arguing, I’m just explaining why I’m right.” – Unknown

“The early bird might get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.” – Steven Wright

“I always wanted to be somebody, but now I realize I should have been more specific.” – Lily Tomlin

“Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.” – Jim Carrey

“I'm not lazy, I'm on energy-saving mode.” – Unknown

“I used to be indecisive. Now I’m not sure.” – Unknown

“I didn’t fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong.” – Benjamin Franklin (attributed)

“If at first you don’t succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried.” – Steven Wright

“I’m not short, I’m concentrated awesome.” – Unknown

“I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows too high. She looked surprised.” – Unknown

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.” – Douglas Adams

“I put my phone in airplane mode, but it won’t take off.” – Unknown

“Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Lord Acton

“Politics is the art of the possible.” – Otto von Bismarck

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood… Teach them to yearn for the vastness of the sea.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (often used politically)

“The ballot is stronger than the bullet.” – Abraham Lincoln

“When goods don’t cross borders, soldiers will.” – Frederic Bastiat

“A house divided against itself cannot stand.” – Abraham Lincoln

“The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.” – Wole Soyinka

“Democracy is not a spectator sport.” – Bill Bradley

“Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” – Wendell Phillips

“In politics, absurdity is not a handicap.” – Napoleon Bonaparte

“All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.” – Edmund Burke

“Public sentiment is everything.” – Abraham Lincoln

“Why so serious?” – The Joker, The Dark Knight

“I’m the king of the world!” – Jack Dawson, Titanic

“Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re gonna get.” – Forrest Gump

“There’s no place like home.” – Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz

“May the Force be with you.” – Star Wars

“You can’t handle the truth!” – Colonel Jessup, A Few Good Men

“Here’s Johnny!” – Jack Torrance, The Shining

“I’ll be back.” – The Terminator

“You talking to me?” – Travis Bickle, Taxi Driver

“Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” – Michael Corleone, The Godfather II

“Just keep swimming.” – Dory, Finding Nemo

“To infinity and beyond!” – Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story

“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” – Audre Lorde

“The story of women’s struggle for equality belongs to no single feminist nor to any one organization but to all who care about human rights.” – Gloria Steinem

“A woman is like a tea bag – you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

“Well-behaved women seldom make history.” – Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

“No woman gets an orgasm from shining the kitchen floor.” – Betty Friedan

“If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.” – Margaret Thatcher

“We should all be feminists.” – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

“Feminism is the radical notion that women are human beings.” – Cheris Kramarae

“I speak for those whose voices have been silenced.” – Malala Yousafzai

“The female is indeed heroically minded.” – Virginia Woolf

“Equality is not a concept. It’s not something we should be striving for. It’s a necessity.” – Maya Angelou

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” – Mae West

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” – Oprah Winfrey

“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.” – Dolly Parton

“You were born to be real, not to be perfect.” – Lady Gaga

“I’m tough, I’m ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay.” – Madonna

“Normal is boring.” – Avril Lavigne

“I’m not a perfect person, there’s many things I wish I didn’t do.” – Justin Timberlake

“My music is the expression of my life.” – Madonna

“You can’t please everyone, and you can’t make everyone like you.” – Taylor Swift

“I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship.” – Rihanna (inspired by Louisa May Alcott)

“Turn your wounds into wisdom.” – Oprah Winfrey