John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
7592 George Walter Thornbury 1828-1876 John Bartlett
| NUMBER: | 7592 |
| AUTHOR: | George Walter Thornbury (1828–1876) |
| QUOTATION: | Man’s life is but a jest, A dream, a shadow, bubble, air, a vapor at the best. 1 |
| ATTRIBUTION: | The Jester’s Sermon. |
| Note 1. See Gay, page 350: Life is a jest and all things show it; I thought so once, but now I know it. Life ’s but a series of trifles at best. Anonymous. Life is an empty dream. Robert Browning. Paracelsus, ii. [back] |