By subscribing to Inspiring Quotes you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
This opening line of Edith Wharton’s dramatic monologue “Vesalius in Zante (1564)” feels like a breath of fresh air. Its speaker is Andreas Vesalius, a Spanish Inquisition-era anatomist who faced such backlash for his studies — scientific research was then forbidden — that, in despair, he burned his manuscripts and abandoned his calling. Vesalius could not bear a life of restricted inquiry forever, though. In his 50s he fled Spain for Jerusalem, yet on his way home was shipwrecked on a Greek island and died. Wharton’s poem, which imagines Vesalius’ final moments, ends as it begins, with a window: “Turn me in my bed. / The window darkens as the hours swing round; / But yonder, look, the other casement glows! / Let me face westward as my sun goes down.” Though the great man's life is ending, Wharton seems to say, it has been a satisfying one — defined, in the end, by truth and integrity.
Quotes To Help You Stay Young and Spry Forever
Reassuring Quotes To Beat the Winter Blues
Start Anew With These 15 Encouraging Quotes
14 Quotes To Celebrate Aquarians
16 Enduring Quotes About Everlasting Love
15 Quotes To Remind You To Stop and Smell the Flowers
9 Evidence-Based Principles for Living a Longer Life, With Quotes
Create the Life You Desire With These 14 Transformative Quotes
15 Quotes About the Unbreakable Bonds Among Women
12 Quotes for When You’re Feeling Overstimulated
20 Quotes for Coffee Lovers