human
Thus, the speaker went on,
gpt
Hear, hear!
human
But when the good things are gained for which the upholders have striven and perhaps given their lives, then there are no more greedy absorbers of the bounty than these same innumerable little throats.
gpt
And now, said the lecturer slowly,
human
Presently,
gpt
Or put it in another way, she went on.
human
A man may make a thing--circumstance included--but he is not a sort of moral spider; he can't spin it out of his own inside. _He wants something to make it of._ The formative force comes from within, but he must have material, just as much as a sculptor must have his marble before he can shape his statue. There is a subtle relation between character and conditions, and it is this _relation_ that determines Fate. Fate is as the statue of the sculptor.
gpt
That's where Hadria mainly differs from you, said Fred,
human
Exactly, assented the lecturer, catching the remark.
gpt
Difficulties need not be really obstructive to the best development of a character or a power, nor a smooth path always favourable. Obstacles may be of a kind to stimulate one person and to annihilate another. It is _not_ a question of relative strength between character and circumstance, as people are so fond of asserting. That is mere gibberish. It means nothing. The two things cannot be compared, for they are not of the same nature. They can't be reduced to a common denominator.
human
We shall never be able to take a reasonable view of this question till we get rid of that ridiculous phrase, '_If the soul is strong enough, it can overcome circumstance._' In a room filled with carbonic acid instead of ordinary air, a giant would succumb as quickly as a dwarf, and his strength would avail him nothing. Indeed, if there is a difference, it is in favour of the dwarf.