Daily Almanac for
Nov 29, 2009
Search White Pages
Search: Infoplease Info search tips
Search: Biographies Bio search tips
 Ask the Editors

The Question:

What is the origin of the often quoted phrase "living well is the best revenge"? I cannot find it anywhere! Fitzgerald? Elliot? The Windsors? Hemingway? Mae West? This is SO often quoted, it should surely have been documented. Can you help?

The Answer:

Sure. The quote is by the English poet George Herbert (1593–1633), according to the latest edition of Bartlett's Familiar Quotations.

—The Editors

Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

    • Cite
    • Print
    • Bookmark