But screw your courage to the sticking-place, / And we’ll not fail.
Lady Macbeth says this to her husband when he wavers over murdering King Duncan. The “sticking-place” is the point at which a peg or screw holds fast, as on a stringed instrument. The phrase is often misquoted as “sticking point”, which means almost the opposite: an obstacle rather than the place where something is secured.
All the world’s a stage, / And all the men and women merely players;
Cowards die many times before their deaths; / The valiant never taste of death but once.
Doubt thou the stars are fire; / Doubt that the sun doth move; / Doubt truth to be a liar; / But never doubt I love.
Beware, for I am fearless and therefore powerful.
The country needs and, unless I mistake its temper, the country demands bold, persistent experimentation. It is common sense to take a method and try it: If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.
Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear — not absence of fear.