100 Helen Keller Quotes (On Life, Love, Hope)

By Maxime Lagacé

Maxime is the founder of WisdomQuotes. He has been collecting quotes since 2004. His goal? To help you develop a calm and peaceful mind. Learn more about him on his about page.

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Here are 100 of the best Helen Keller quotes you’ll ever find.

And they are amazing.

You’ll learn

  • How to be more persevering
  • How to find purpose in your life
  • The value of being more grateful

But before we go any further, who was Helen Keller (1880-1968) exactly?

  • She was an American author, disability rights advocate, political activist, and lecturer
  • She became deaf and blind at 19 months old due to an illness
  • She met famous figures like Mark Twain, Alexander Graham Bell, and multiple U.S. presidents
  • She published 12 books and numerous essays throughout her life
  • She traveled to over 35 countries (to advocate for people with disabilities)

In sum, Helen Keller is a true inspiration for all of us.

She fought for social justice, peace, women’s rights, workers’ rights, education.

And a lot more.

I hope you’ll love her quotes as much as I do.

Enjoy!

Top 10 Helen Keller Quotes

helen keller quotes beauty everything silence darkness wisdom

There is beauty in everything, even in silence and darkness. Helen Keller

One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar. Helen Keller

Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it. Helen Keller

The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision. Helen Keller

We could never learn to be brave and patient if there were only joy in the world. Helen Keller

helen keller quotes life succession lessons wisdom

Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. Helen Keller

Blindness separates us from things but deafness separates us from people. Helen Keller

A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the mastery of hardships. Helen Keller

Things seen are temporal and things unseen are eternal. Helen Keller

What I am looking for is not out there, it is in me. Helen Keller

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Helen Keller Quotes About Hope (Inspirational)

helen keller quotes keep face sunshing shadow wisdom

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow. Helen Keller

There are no shortcuts to any place worth going. Helen Keller

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us. Helen Keller

Doubts and mistrust are the mere panic of timid imagination, which the steadfast heart will conquer, and the large mind transcend. Helen Keller

Never bend your head. Hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye. Helen Keller

No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars or sailed an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit. Helen Keller

Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible. Helen Keller

helen keller quotes optimism faith leads wisdom

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. Helen Keller

The place between your comfort zone and your dream is where life takes place. Helen Keller

The struggle of life is one of our greatest blessings. It makes us patient, sensitive, and Godlike. It teaches us that although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it. Helen Keller

Do not think of today’s failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. Helen Keller

Your success and happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties. Helen Keller

Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold. Helen Keller

Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light. Helen Keller

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We can do anything we want to if we stick to it long enough. Helen Keller

To keep on trying in spite of disappointment and failure is the only way to keep young and brave. Failures become victories if they make us wise-hearted. Helen Keller

You will succeed if you persevere; and you will find joy in overcoming obstacles. Helen Keller

Making a mistake is falling down; failure is not getting up again. Helen Keller

Silver is purified in fire and so are we. It is in the most trying times that our real character is shaped and revealed. Helen Keller

What really counts in life is the quiet meeting of every difficulty with the determination to get out of it all the good there is. Helen Keller

Face your deficiencies and acknowledge them; but do not let them master you. Let them teach you patience, sweetness, insight. Helen Keller

Fear: the best way out is through. Helen Keller

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Helen Keller Quotes About Life And Happiness

helen keller quotes best beautiful things world wisdom

The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. Helen Keller

I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light. Helen Keller

The highest result of education is tolerance. Helen Keller

Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. Helen Keller

Happiness is the final and perfect fruit of obedience to the laws of life. Helen Keller

Life is short and unpredictable. Eat the dessert first! Helen Keller

helen keller quotes alone little together wisdom

Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. Helen Keller

The only real blind person at Christmas-time is he who has not Christmas in his heart. Helen Keller

Happiness does not come from without, it comes from within. Helen Keller

True happiness is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. Helen Keller

I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble. Helen Keller

So much has been given to me; I have no time to ponder over that which has been denied. Helen Keller

Happiness is a state of mind, and depends very little on outward circumstances. Helen Keller

helen keller quotes comes simplest way happy good wisdom

It all comes to this: the simplest way to be happy is to do good. Helen Keller

Your success and happiness lie in you. Helen Keller

Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world. Helen Keller

While they were saying among themselves it cannot be done, it was done. Helen Keller

If I am happy in spite of my deprivations, if my happiness is so deep that it is a faith, so thoughtful that it becomes a philosophy of life. If, in short, I am an optimist, my testimony to the creed of optimism is worth hearing. Helen Keller

One should never count the years – one should instead count one’s interests. I have kept young trying never to lose my childhood sense of wonderment. I’m glad I still have a vivid curiosity about the world I live in. Helen Keller

Happiness is like the mountain summit. It is sometimes hidden by clouds, but we know it is there. Helen Keller

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Helen Keller Quotes About Love And Respect

helen keller quotes what once enjoyed loved wisdom

What we once enjoyed and deeply loved we can never lose, for all that we love deeply becomes a part of us. Helen Keller

True friends never become apart; maybe in distance but never in heart. Helen Keller

We should respect all people. Helen Keller

My friends have made the story of my life. In a thousand ways they have turned my limitations into beautiful privileges. Helen Keller

Believe, when you are most unhappy, that there is something for you to do in the world. So long as you can sweeten another’s pain, life is not in vain. Helen Keller

Everybody talks, nobody listens. Good listeners are as rare as white crows. Helen Keller

helen keller quotes never really happy others wisdom

We are never really happy until we try to brighten the lives of others. Helen Keller

There is no better way to thank God for your sight than by giving a helping hand to someone in the dark. Helen Keller

So long as the memory of certain beloved friends lives in my heart, I shall say that life is good. Helen Keller

Until the great mass of the people shall be filled with the sense of responsibility for each other’s welfare, social justice can never be attained. Helen Keller

Tolerance is the first principle of community; it is the spirit which conserves the best that all men think. Helen Keller

The unselfish effort to bring cheer to others will be the beginning of a happier life for ourselves. Helen Keller

Helen Keller Quotes About Death

Death is no more than passing from one room into another. But there’s a difference for me, you know. Because in that other room I shall be able to see. Helen Keller

I believe there are angels among us, sent down to us from somewhere up above. They come to you and me in our darkest hours, to show us how to live, to teach us how to give, to guide us with a light of love. Helen Keller

More Quotes By Helen Keller

helen keller quotes well educated mind questions answers wisdom

A well-educated mind will always have more questions than answers. Helen Keller

All the world is full of suffering. It is also full of overcoming. Helen Keller

Ideas without action are useless. Helen Keller

Everything has its wonders, even darkness and silence, and I learn whatever state I am in, therin to be content. Helen Keller

Better to be blind and see with your heart, than to have two good eyes and see nothing. Helen Keller

A bend in the road is not the end of the road…Unless you fail to make the turn. Helen Keller

A good education is a stepping-stone to wealth. Helen Keller

I was like that ship before my education began, only I was without compass or sounding , and no way of knowing how near the harbor was. Helen Keller

Even if you have a problem, you don’t need to be one. Helen Keller

I do not want the peace that passeth understanding. I want the understanding which bringeth peace. Helen Keller

We differ, blind and seeing, one from another, not in our senses, but in the use we make of them, in the imagination and courage with which we seek wisdom beyond the senses. Helen Keller

The problems of deafness are deeper and more complex, if not more important, than those of blindness. Helen Keller

helen keller quotes world suffering overcoming wisdom

Oh, you think the darkness is your ally, but you merely adopted the dark. I was born in it. Molded by it. Helen Keller

People do not like to think. If one thinks, one must reach conclusions. Conclusions are not always pleasant. Helen Keller

Science may have found a cure for most evils; but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all – the apathy of human beings. Helen Keller

Smell is a potent wizard that transports you across thousands of miles and all the years you have lived. Helen Keller

To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug. Helen Keller

I have made my limitations tools of learning and true joy. Helen Keller

True teaching cannot be learned from text-books any more than a surgeon can acquire his skill by reading about surgery. Helen Keller

“I thank God for my handicaps. For through them, I have found myself, my work and my God. Helen Keller

Tyranny cannot defeat the power of ideas. Helen Keller

Knowledge is love and light and vision. Helen Keller

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Conclusion

The best things in life are unseen, that’s why we close our eyes when we kiss, cry, and dream. Helen Keller

Key Takeaways

Here are 5 takeaways from these amazing quotes by Helen Keller.

  • Perseverance: Never give up, no matter how big the obstacle — effort and patience can overcome almost anything. Pro tip: Like Helen Keller, if you fall 7 times, stand up 8.
  • Gratitude: Appreciate what you do have instead of focusing on what’s missing. Pro tip: Like Helen Keller, even if your life is not perfect, learn to appreciate what you already have.
  • Curiosity: Always keep learning; the mind can stay open even when the senses are limited. Pro tip: Like Helen Keller did, always ask questions and learn and grow.
  • Optimism: Choose hope and positivity even when life feels dark or unfair. Pro tip: Helen Keller could have been depressed. But she decided to stay positive despite the obstacles.
  • Purpose: Use your challenges to help and inspire others — turn struggle into service. Pro tip: Helen Keller believed helping others was key to happiness. So don’t be selfish. And do good around you.

Further Readings

I hope you enjoyed these inspiring quotes by Helen Keller. If you did, please share them with a friend today!

Did you know about Helen Keller before? What’s your favorite quote from her? And remember: words can transform your life, if you find the right ones.

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Author Bio

maxime lagace

Maxime Lagacé started collecting quotes in 2004 after he lost his girlfriend in a car accident.

In search of meaning, he dived in the self-improvement world, psychology and trail running.

Books, blogs, quotes and nature became his guide.

He started journaling, reflecting, writing his thoughts, feelings and quotes.

His goal was to understand his pain, his depression, his fears, his lack of motivation and inspiration.

He finished his software engineering degree in 2007 at the École de Technologie Supérieure de Montréal.

A few years later, he started his first website to share his love of quotes.

Maxime is a father of two, husband, and INFJ.

Other notable interests of Maxime are health (mental and physical), meditation, bananas, SEO, human potential, and education.

You can find him on X, Facebook, Threads, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Substack, YouTube.

Last update

October 17, 2025

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