Who said “Would you not like to try all sorts of lives -- one is so very small -- but that is the…”?

Verified

Katherine Mansfield. A published source records them saying or writing it.

SourceLetter to Sylvia Payne (24 April 1906), from The Collected Letters of Katherine Mansfield (1984-1996), vol. I

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“Would you not like to try all sorts of lives -- one is so very small -- but that is the satisfaction of writing -- one can impersonate so many people.”
— Katherine Mansfield
VerifiedLetter to Sylvia Payne (24 April 1906), from The Collected Letters of Katherine Mansfield (1984-1996), vol. I · evidenceFiction
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Cite this quote

For academic work, cite the original where you can: Letter to Sylvia Payne (24 April 1906), from The Collected Letters of Katherine Mansfield (1984-1996), vol. I.

APA

Mansfield, K. (n.d.). Would you not like to try all sorts of lives -- one is so very small -- but that is the satisfaction of writing -- one can impersonate so many people. [Quotation]. Famous Quotations Network. Retrieved October 24, 2026, from https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/17916-would-you-not-like-to-try-all-sorts/

MLA

Mansfield, Katherine. “Would you not like to try all sorts of lives -- one is so very small -- but that is the satisfaction of writing -- one can impersonate so many people.” Famous Quotations Network, https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/17916-would-you-not-like-to-try-all-sorts/. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Mansfield, Katherine. “Would you not like to try all sorts of lives -- one is so very small -- but that is the satisfaction of writing -- one can impersonate so many people.” Famous Quotations Network. Accessed October 24, 2026. https://www.famous-quotations.com/quotes/17916-would-you-not-like-to-try-all-sorts/.

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“I want to be all that I am capable of becoming.”
VerifiedEntry in her journal (10 October 1922) which she tore out to send to John Middleton Murry, before changing her mind. This later became the last published entry in The Journal of Katherine Mansfield (1927) ed. J. Middleton Murry · evidenceDetails & citeExcellence
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“If only one could tell true love from false love as one can tell mushrooms from toadstools.”
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“To work -- to work! It is such infinite delight to know that we still have the best things to do.”
VerifiedLetter to Bertrand Russell (7 December 1916), from The Collected Letters of Katherine Mansfield, vol. I · evidenceDetails & citeWork
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“I want, by understanding myself, to understand others. I want to be all that I am capable of becoming.”
VerifiedEntry in her journal (10 October 1922) which she tore out to send to John Middleton Murry, before changing her mind. This later became the last published entry in The Journal of Katherine Mansfield (1927) ed. J. Middleton Murry · evidenceDetails & citeSelf-knowledge
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“Risk! Risk anything! Care no more for the opinion of others, for those voices. Do the hardest thing on earth for you. Act for yourself. Face the truth.”
VerifiedJournal entry (14 October 1922), published in The Journal of Katherine Mansfield (1927) · evidenceDetails & citeRisk
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All 16 Katherine Mansfield quotes →