The Man In The Arena | A Powerful Speech

Citizenship in a Republic is the title of a speech given by Theodore Roosevelt, former President of the United States, at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, on April 23, 1910. One notable passage from the speech is referred to as "The Man in the Arena." This is one of the greatest and most inspirational speeches ever written – the key point is that is does not need to only relate to sportsmen and the military elite but also to life in general.

Transcript

It is not the critic who counts,

Not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles,

Or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.

The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,

Whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood,

Who strives valiantly,

Who errs,

Who comes short again and again,

Because there is no effort without error and shortcoming.

But who does actually strive to do the deeds,

Who knows great enthusiasms,

The great devotions,

Who spends himself in a worthy cause,

Who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,

And who at the worst,

If he fails,

At least fails while daring greatly,

So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.