I got to thinking about Romeo and Juliet, how it's not considered by critics one of Shakespeare's greatest plays, but how it still has a huge portion of his most memorable lines. You kiss by the book, or What light through yonder window breaks? Etc.
Anyway, then I started thinking about the finest sentences ever composed in English. I think Shakespeare had a greater mastery of the language than anyone else has or will -- That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet seems to be a contender. But there are tons of great English poets and a lot of famous sentences in the great canon of English literature. The last line of The Great Gatsby, or of A Tale of Two Cities. The most famous lines from Nabokov. And then there's the entire collection of English song lyrics, of which there are millions.
So what do you all think?
EDIT: so many fantastic answers.
I think "Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo" is probably one of the greatest sentences. As it shows how completely ridiculous our language can be, as well as how flexible it can be. Also, it's always fun to see. There isn't anything deep about the meaning, but it's the lexical complexity of it that makes it nice. If you go by meaning, then you can accomplish the same meaning in a different language. Which IMO doesn't really make it the best sentence of the language. The meaning might be great, and hell, it might be the best meaning in any language. But it still doesn't show off the language in it's full or give it a reason to be the best in a particular language (is it the best in a different language as well?). So had the question be "What's the single greatest sentence ever written?" my answer would probably be different. But in the english language specifically, I'd have to go with the buffalo sentence.
For the other question (sentences in general / language agnostic), it's a bit harder to decide. As there's a lot of sentences that are really great. The one sentence that I keep returning to and that is kind of my life motto is: "this too, shall pass." It's a simple sentence that signify's the fleeting nature of things. It's applicable to every single event or thing in life. It's possibly my favorite sentence. However, there's tons of other great ones, so it makes it hard to choose... I really like: "Have you ever realized how insignificant your existence is on the planet?" and everything that follows it. It's a quote from the anime Haruhi. The main character asks it, and then goes on to explain how she realized that she wasn't really significant in any way. Everyone was just kind of doing the same thing in all parts of the world. And that there's so many people, nothing is really all that special. It really puts things into perspective. There's a lot of other good stuff as well, but I think that satisfy's your question :)
There's a great folktale that goes along with that one. Story goes (and forgive me, for it's been years since I heard it) that there once was a great king whose chambers were filled with absolutely everything you could imagine, for he had a penchant for collecting - a greed, perhaps. He had gold and jewels galore, he had the rights to the best land within and outside his kingdom. He had the most talented people in the land in his court, to entertain, amuse, converse with him. But, as every story goes, he was not satisfied. He had objects of desire, objects of sadness, things that could cause immense pain, and others that could cure many diseases, but it was not enough. He wanted the perfect object, the most beautiful and utterly fine treasure that ever did exist. So he put out a call with a reward - the largest reward of all: everything he owned. Such was his desire for this object. And for years upon years he had streams of people coming to him with wondrous things: diamonds as big as a man's skull, a steed that could run for leagues and never tire, an army that would obey his every single command no matter what, women as beautiful as the fresh sun of dawn on the treetops - but he turned them all away. In the end, he began to die. It was a slow, painful, and mysterious death. His people tried desperately to cure him - for despite his greed, he was a kind ruler, and they lived prosperously and happily - but to no avail. His cries would ring out from his tower every night, making it nigh impossible to sleep. His city slowed, and began to sicken, as its people dredged by, day by day, with little rest. Eventually, after months of this unrelenting pain, just as the king had given in, resolving that his sickness was caused by his desire burning into his heart, a traveller arrived at his gates, claiming that he had what the king was seeking. He had little with him: no horse nor carriage, a bag so small that it surely could hold no treasures. The city guard were doubtful, fearing that this lone traveller had come to take the king's life and his treasure, but let him in regardless, for hope still lay in their hearts, no matter how dormant. The traveller had claimed that the treasure he had brought would bring the king both happiness and sadness, that it could be held and treasured in times of both victory and defeat, wealth and famine. So they let him in. They were not foolish, however, and accompanied him to the king's chambers. They watched as the traveller slowly walked up to the king's bed, where he had lain for the past month, unable to move. The traveller leaned in and whispered something in the king's ear. Their beloved king died, then, staring into the traveller's eyes, mouth open only slightly, a soft sigh that was heard throughout the room. Panicked, the guards sprung into action, fearing that the worst had happened, and that this traveller had somehow assassinated their already-dying king. "Peace, friends!" the traveller exclaimed. "I did not kill your king, I simply gave him what he desired. Once he had that, he no longer had anything to tie him to this realm." The guards remained suspicious, but there was something about this traveller that made his words ring true. One of them asked: "What did you whisper to him? What was it that the king desired?" "I gave him the most wondrous treasure there is. It can bring joy and sadness. It has no material wealth, nor any physical presence. It is but a phrase," the traveller replied. "And what is that phrase?" the guard asked quietly, almost afraid to hear the answer. "This, too, shall pass."
Great question. I'm not sure if this is my final answer, but this was my first thought - from Thomas Jefferson :We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
Politician used to be synonymous with poet, it seems. I like your answer the best.It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.
Just pitching in with some ideas, I think Kurt Vonnegut has had some amazing lines; what with so it goes and the smell of mustard gas and roses. I suggest thinking out of the box of generally-accepted classics and "the greats."
I turned to hubski in large part for a) its knowledge of poetry and b) its ability to think beyond the classics. However, I definitely consider Vonnegut a "great," just an unconventional one. So it goes in particular illustrates that the power of a sentence has everything to do with context and nothing to do with word count or vocabulary.
This is not the greatest sentence ever written in the English language, however trying to think of my answer, a lyric by Andy Partridge of XTC popped into my head: For me, that captures the absurdity that is the immense time and space that is the backdrop for a human condition that is absurdly full of myopic meanderings.'bout a zillion years ago / Some star sneezed / Now their paging you in reception
I'm sorry about your friend. That video is sad, but beautiful. It's amazing the power of music. You can be that sad and the one thing that will get through and let you feel something that isn't pain, is music.
By far the best sentence in the history of the English language: This is the last sentence in Charles Darwin's On The Origin of Species. In one single sentence he builds a scientific and philosophical framework that would become the dominant paradigm in all of science.There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.
[23:16:27] <flag> when i made the post i was going more for feats of syntactical prowess and so on [23:16:46] <flag> the best combination of deep meaning and lyrical beauty I wrote this on the hubski IRC about thirty seconds before I saw your post. Perfect answer as far as I'm concerned. That's a beautifully constructed sentence and also one of the most important ever written.
J. Robert Oppenheimer, a physicist working on the Manhattan Project during the second world war, became quite interested in things outside of the sciences including the Hindu religion. An anecdote from one of the first tests of the atomic bomb, he had translated a phrase from the Bhagavad Gita where Vishnu changes into his many armed form and says : "I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds" This just gives me chills every time I read it. Sects of Hinduism see death more as a renewal rather than the western idea of "death as end", so that creates a whole other aspect to the verse.
Hence this reddit post, maybe my favorite from that site ever. Deserves its own thread really.
Good read, makes me want to read some Indian mythology. I can't imagine what Oppenheimer, a pacifist must have felt knowing what he had a hand in. I'd like to read more about him too. Thanks for the link.
To me his line is up there with One small step for man in terms of words fitting and even surpassing an occasion. Whenever I think about stuff like this I get really fuzzy inside about the sheer wonder of language, the greatest invention in history -- and then I go off and frantically bang words together to see what I come up with.
Great post. I read Oppenheimers biography 'American Prometheus' a few years ago and he comes across just as described here, a highly gifted polymath. I can remember during his time in Góttingen he wanted to read some poetry written in Dutch with some other class mates. Apparently he went off by himself and learned the Dutch language in 6 weeks. Great biography and well worth a look.
I'd say one of the sentances of Goodbye Blue Sky from Pink Floyd's The Wall. Sadly I had to link from Dailymotion, as the original version is blocked all over Youtube. The song is about the Blitz of the Second World War, when London was bombed for 57 consecutive nights. Especially these sentences capture the pain that a nation felt.Did you ever wonder why we had to run for shelter when the promise of a brave new world unfurled beneath a clear blue sky
The flames are all long gone but the pain lingers on.
Goodbye, Blue Sky.
I think we need some goal posts here to define what we mean by great. If we mean longest then you would probably look to the likes of Molly Blooms soliloquy in Ulyssess, but that doesn't sound right does it? Longest is not what we are after. Some suggestions like nowaypablos Vonnegut: "so it goes". While I like the Slaughter House 5 and how this quote is used within it; does that sentence taken on its own represent the greatest sentence ever written? Personally I don't think so. Are we to take sentences out of context and judge them in isolation from the work which contains them? If not then surely the sentences 'greatness' is at least in part due to the greatness of all the words within that work upon which it relies. EDIT:
Anyway, much to my own annoyance and against my personal sensibilities, the greatest sentence in terms of the impact it has had on Humanity has to be Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Really? I don't feel any particular impact from that sentence at all. Matthew 7:12, perhaps.
I guess if you consider how the concept that God created everything we can see and also what we cannot and you layer on top of this the fact it was accepted as literal truth (and still is by some people today) for hundreds of years then it has to rank as one of the most important sentences. The fact that it doesn't strike you (or indeed myself) as of great importance is understandable given the times we live in but for the many generations that have come before.... Can we really say that a witty Samuel Clemens quip or even a multi-layered David Foster Wallace quote can be said to be in the same league in terms of the impact or importance they have had on the world around us? Matthew 7:12 "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." Is a good one, the problem I have always had with it is its implicit statement that the source of right and wrong is within each of us and overrides and form of more universal law. Which is fine until you meet a psychopath who has a different idea about the whole "do unto others" thing.
I guess we can agree to disagree. Creation myths were old when that line was penned, so it's not like that was even a new idea. >> Which is fine until you meet a psychopath who has a different idea about the whole "do unto others" thing. The golden rule is advice for one's own behaviour. I'd be quite surprised if any psychopath would ever consider themselves bound by it. However, I should treat anyone, even the psychopath, as I would wish to be treated - so the advice holds for me. The golden rule is not something which may be imposed on others!
I guess we can agree to disagree. Creation myths were old when that line was penned, so it's not like that was even a new idea.
While creation myths were old there were various versions of them, especially if you include all the polytheism stuff. The writing of this line was one of the earliest points when civilisation moved to Monotheism on-mass. Genesis 1:1 clearly stated for everyone "One god and he did everything". From that point on that was the agreed 'truth' and it has played a huge part in how the modern world is shaped today, thousands of years after it was written. That has to rate as 'Great' to some degree? I guess it depends on the interpretation of the question.The golden rule is advice for one's own behaviour. I'd be quite surprised if any psychopath would ever consider themselves bound by it. However, I should treat anyone, even the psychopath, as I would wish to be treated - so the advice holds for me. The golden rule is not something which may be imposed on others!
Well said.
NOOO! I can't take any more kittens!
Insom and I were working on adding audio excerpts to a site and this one popped up. She said it should be postes here so it can be enjoye by all :)
The very first line of Gravity's Rainbow is one of my favorite lines of all of literature. Still need to try and finish that book...A screaming comes across the sky. It has happened before, but there is nothing to compare it to now.
There was a very good article in the Atlantic recently about authors' favorite first lines of books. Not totally the same as this thread, but a similar idea. There is a certain art in opening lines of stories. A great many of them go with Moby Dick: http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/07/thi.../Call me Ishmael.
And this one I posted elsewhere on Hubski: http://hubski.com/pub?id=111275
Similar yes, but I actually see a slight distinction be tween the two. To me, So it goes implies an outside observer describing the situation to a second outside observer. It seems as if the first observer is more knowledgable about the situation at hand and is imparting knowledge, changing the structure of their world. Nothing to be done, on the other hand, seems to come from the mouth of an active participant; someone has tried, has given up, and is now describing her experience to a fellow compatriot. The compatriot might also be explaining her own experience; the two are interchangeable. There is a mutual agreement on the futility of any action, and yet they stil act, their actions changing nothing. Of course, this is all highly subjective and incredibly dependent on your personal worldview, but this is how I interpret it.
Hey that makes a lot of sense. I could even over-analyze it further and posit that Vonnegut's emphasis on the internal, the participator, is why his novels never descended into absurdism. I always liked See the cat? See the cradle? better anyway.