The strength of any plan depends on the time. Circumstances and things eternally shift and change.
The bitterness of the potion, and the abhorrence of the patient are necessary circumstances to the operation. It must be something to trouble and disturb the stomach that must purge and cure it.
All other knowledge is hurtful to him who has not honesty and good-nature.
We must learn to suffer what we cannot evade; our life, like the harmony of the world, is composed of contrary things, and one part is no less necessary than the other.
It is a sign of contraction of the mind when it is content, or of weariness.
Things seem greater by imagination than they are in effect.
I set forth a humble and inglorious life; that does not matter. You can tie up all moral philosophy with a common and private life just as well as with a life of richer stuff. Each man bears the entire form of man’s estate.
There were many terrible things in my life and most of them never happened.
Saying is one thing and doing is another.
The greater part of the world’s troubles are due to questions of grammar.
I do not believe, from what I have been told about this people, that there is anything barbarous or savage about them, except that we all call barbarous anything that is contrary to our own habits.
It is putting a very high price on one’s conjectures to have someone roasted alive on their account.
It is not reasonable that art should win the place of honor over our great and powerful mother Nature. We have so overloaded the beauty and richness of her works by our inventions that we have quite smothered her.
Let every foot have its own shoe.
Our zeal works wonders, whenever it supports our inclination toward hatred, cruelty, ambition.
Pride and curiosity are the two scourges of our souls. The latter prompts us to poke our noses into everything, and the former forbids us to leave anything unresolved and undecided.
Stupidity and wisdom meet in the same centre of sentiment and resolution, in the suffering of human accidents.
My business is only to keep myself in motion, whilst motion pleases me; I only walk for the walk’s sake.
I speak to the paper, as I speak to the first person I meet.
Other people do not see you at all, but guess at you by uncertain conjectures.