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Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠having an honest distrust of oneself, to treat oneself as a suspicious character, as a financier treats an unreliable client.

Earnestness (n.) that ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠preaches the earnest as something at a meteoric distance from daily life is a deception as dangerous as silence.

Earnestness (n.) as ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the world uses the word is the pressure of worldly concern — and should the world become earnest in the highest sense, it would burst out laughing.

Earnestness (n.) never ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠tires of tracking illusions: as a thinker the earnest man fears most being in error, as a Christian being lost without knowing it, however pleasant the company.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠enthusiasm with a power over itself: human enthusiasm, however noble, is not finally powerful because it has no higher power above it.

Earnestness (n.) spiritually ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠understood is continuing the childhood game of “Stranger” — making a new acquaintance with old acquaintances.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠a man's God-relationship; but money is the world's god, so the world thinks everything to do with money is earnestness — to make much money even by selling men, that is earnestness.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠never surly: no one was ever earnest who had not learned from it that one can also seem too earnest — many a reconciliation fails from excess of it.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the acquired originality of disposition — its originality kept in the responsibility of freedom — which is why it can never become habit.

Earnestness (n.) alone ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠can return every Sunday to the same prayer and the same baptism with the same originality — enthusiasm burns out, and anything else becomes pedantry.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠born with no one, though one may be born with disposition; the surest measure of a person is the secret of what made him earnest in life.

Earnestness (n.) at ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠the wrong place — about the national debt, the categories, a night at the theater — is eo ipso comical, and irony has enough to keep it busy.

Earnestness (n.) has ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠one object every human being has — himself; whoever is earnest about something great and noisy instead is, for all his earnestness, a joker, and irony, jealous of earnestness, will find him out.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠not proved by adversity, by commanding soldiers, writing many books, or dressing corpses for a living; it is in the inner being, not in the job.

Earnestness (n.) does ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠not waste time guessing riddles or admiring metaphors for death; it acts, and its terse cry, like death's, is: this very day.

Earnestness (n.) does ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠not scowl: it is reconciled with life and knows how to fear death.

Earnestness (n.) is ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠living each day as if it were the last and also the first of a long life, and choosing work that does not depend on whether one gets a lifetime to finish it.

Earnestness (n.) at ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠its most beautiful can be turned, by one whisper of the simple truth remembered from youth, into a still more beautiful jest.

Earnestness (n.) cannot ⁠​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​⁠be learned from the seriousness of life unless you bring it with you; life is not a schoolmaster but an indifferent power, from which one may also learn indifference.