Strangely enough, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be.

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Source: Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution (1965)

About this quote

In Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution (1965), King uses a focused ethical claim to examine wisdom, with attention to strangely, enough, never. The practical center is the relationship between life and ought and until, giving readers a specific lens for judgment and action.

When to use it

  • A community organizer builds a meeting around strangely before participants choose one measurable action related to wisdom.
  • A teacher pairs the passage from Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution (1965) with a primary-source exercise about life and public responsibility.
  • A team leader uses the tension between enough and until to discuss conduct under pressure.