Jean de La Bruy�re
France
16 Aug 1645 // 11 May 1696
Writer / Moralist
16 Aug 1645 // 11 May 1696
Writer / Moralist
Quotes
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Making a book is a craft, like making a clock; it needs more than native wit to be an author
It's motive alone which gives character to the actions of men
It is fortunate to be of high birth, but it is no less so to be of such character that people do not care to know whether you are or are not
If some persons died, and others did not die, death would be a terrible affliction
If our life is unhappy it is painful to bear; if it is happy it is horrible to lose, so the one is pretty equal to the other
Even the best intentioned of great men need a few scoundrels around them; there are some things you cannot ask an honest man to do
Avoid lawsuits beyond all things; they pervert your conscience, impair your health, and dissipate your property
All men's misfortunes spring from their hatred of being alone
A vain man finds it wise to speak good or ill of himself; a modest man does not talk of himself
A slave has but one master; an ambitious man has as many masters as there are people who may be useful in bettering his position
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On Anger: "For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind."
Essays
Essays
On Destiny: "Our destiny exercises its influence over us even when, as yet, we have not learned its nature: it is our future that lays down the law of our today."
Human, All Too Human
Human, All Too Human
On Friendship: "A crowd is not company; and faces are but a gallery of pictures; and talk but a tinkling cymbal, where there is no love."
Essays
Essays