Famous Pessimists The nice part about being a pessimist is that you are constantly being either proven right or pleasantly surprised. George Will Both optimists and pessimists contribute to society. The optimist invents the aeroplane, the pessimist the parachute. George Bernard Shaw The man who is a pessimist before 48 knows too much; if he is an optimist after it he knows too little. Mark Twain I'm a pessimist because of intelligence, but an optimist because of will. Antonio Gramsci