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H L Mencken Quotes

Biography

H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) was a prominent American journalist, essayist, and cultural critic. He is best known for his satirical reportage on the Scopes "Monkey" Trial, published in "The Baltimore Sun," and his influential book "The American Language" (1919), which documented and celebrated American English. more H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) was a prominent American journalist, essayist, and cultural critic. He is best known for his satirical reportage on the Scopes "Monkey" Trial, published in "The Baltimore Sun," and his influential book "The American Language" (1919), which documented and celebrated American English. During the 1920s, Mencken co-edited the literary magazine "The Smart Set" and co-founded "The American Mercury," a periodical that became a platform for some of the era's most incisive social criticism. Mencken's acerbic wit and keen observations made him a formidable figure in early 20th-century American letters. He remained a significant voice in American journalism until a stroke in 1948 left him unable to write. less

Popular Quotes

"It is hard to believe that a man is telling the truth when you know that you would lie if you were in his place"
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"The older I grow the more I distrust the familiar doctrine that age brings wisdom"
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"Conscience is the inner voice that warns us that someone may be looking"
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"Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage"
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"For every complex problem, there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong"
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"Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy"
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