Baltasar Gracian on Wisdom
“A wise man gets more use from his enemies than a fool from his friends.” Baltasar Gracian
Francis Bacon on Beauty
“There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.” Sir Francis Bacon, “Of Beauty” English author, courtier, & philosopher (1561 – 1626)
Anatole France on Law
“The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread.” Anatole France, The Red Lily, 1894, chapter 7 French novelist (1844 – 1924)
Pearl S. Buck on Work
“To find joy in work is to discover the fountain of youth.” Pearl S. Buck
John Kenneth Galbraith on Politics
“Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it’s just the opposite.” John Kenneth Galbraith US (Canadian-born) administrator & economist (1908 – 2006)
Ambrose Bierce on Anger
“Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.” Ambrose Bierce
Harlan Ellison’s Funny Quote
“The two most common elements in the universe are Hydrogen and stupidity.” Harlan Ellison US science fiction author & screenwriter (1934 – )
Winston Churchill on Strategy and Results
“However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.” Winston Churchill
Eleanor Roosevelt on Character
“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built.” Eleanor Roosevelt
Sun Tzu on Leadership
“A leader leads by example not by force.” Sun Tzu Chinese general & military strategist (~400 BC)
An English Professor on Writing
“I am returning this otherwise good typing paper to you because someone has printed gibberish all over it and put your name at the top.” An English Professor, Ohio University
Arthur C. Clarke on Science
“If an elderly but distinguished scientist says that something is possible, he is almost certainly right; but if he says that it is impossible, he is very probably wrong.” Arthur C. Clarke English physicist & science fiction author (1917 – 2008)
Kin Hubbard on Success
“There’s no secret about success. Did you ever know a successful man who didn’t tell you about it?” Kin Hubbard (1868 – 1930)
Oscar Wilde on Selfishness
“Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.” Oscar Wilde Irish dramatist, novelist, & poet (1854 – 1900)
Thomas E. Lawrence on Dreams
“All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.” Thomas E. Lawrence
Ernest Hemingway Cynical Quote
“Never confuse movement with action.” Ernest Hemingway US author & journalist (1899 – 1961)
Abraham Lincoln’s Cynical Quote
“It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.” Abraham Lincoln 16th president of US (1809 – 1865)
Stephen Leacock on Advertising
“Advertising may be described as the science of arresting the human intelligence long enough to get money from it.” Stephen Leacock Canadian economist & humorist (1869 – 1944)
Honoré de Balzac on Marriage
“A good marriage would be between a blind wife and a deaf husband.” Honoré de Balzac
Arnold J. Toynbee on Work
“The supreme accomplishment is to blur the line between work and play.” Arnold J. Toynbee
Bo Jackson on Success
“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” Bo Jackson
Albert Einstein on Science
“The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is at all comprehensible.” Albert Einstein US (German-born) physicist (1879 – 1955)
Henry Ford on Reputation
“You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.” Henry Ford US automobile industrialist (1863 – 1947)
George Bernard Shaw on Life
“There are two tragedies in life. One is not to get your heart’s desire. The other is to get it.” George Bernard Shaw, “Man and Superman” (1903), act 4 Irish dramatist & socialist (1856 – 1950)
Groucho Marx on TV and Books
“I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.” Groucho Marx US comedian with Marx Brothers (1890 – 1977)
Marlon Brando on Television
“If there’s anything unsettling to the stomach, it’s watching actors on television talk about their personal lives.” Marlon Brando US movie actor (1924 – 2004)
Will Rogers Cynical Quote
“Everything is funny as long as it is happening to Somebody Else.” Will Rogers, Illiterate Digest (1924), “Warning to Jokers: lay off the prince” US humorist & showman (1879 – 1935)
Voltaire on Freedom
“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Voltaire, (Attributed); originated in “The Friends of Voltaire”, 1906, by S. G. Tallentyre (Evelyn Beatrice Hall) French author, humanist, rationalist, & satirist (1694 – 1778)
Michel de Montaigne on Silliness
“No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately.” Michel de Montaigne French essayist (1533 – 1592)
Marquis de la Grange on Advice
“When we ask for advice, we are usually looking for an accomplice.” Marquis de la Grange (1639 – 1692)
Samuel Johnson on Curiosity
“A generous and elevated mind is distinguished by nothing more certainly than an eminent degree of curiosity.” Samuel Johnson
Isadora Duncan on Experience
“What one has not experienced, one will never understand in print.” Isadora Duncan
Sophocles on Wisdom
“Wisdom outweighs any wealth.” Sophocles
C. S. Lewis on Life
“We are what we believe we are.” C. S. Lewis
Francis Bacon on Change
“Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly.” Francis Bacon
Henry Austin Dobson on Time
“Time goes, you say? Ah, no! alas, time stays, we go.” Henry Austin Dobson
Antoine de Saint-Exupery on Language
“Language is the source of misunderstandings.” Antoine de Saint-Exupery French writer (1900 – 1944)
Kate Reid on Acting
“Acting is not being emotional, but being able to express emotion.” Kate Reid
Lynda Barry on Love
“Love is an exploding cigar we willingly smoke.” Lynda Barry
Arthur Koestler on Discovery
“The more original a discovery, the more obvious it seems afterwards.” Arthur Koestler British (Hungarian-born) author (1905 – 1983)
Lucius Annaeus Seneca on Death
“The day which we fear as our last is but the birthday of eternity.” Lucius Annaeus Seneca
Will Rogers on Ignorance
“You know everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects.” Will Rogers, New York Times Aug. 31 1924 US humorist & showman (1879 – 1935)
Don Marquis on Procrastination
“Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” Don Marquis US humorist (1878 – 1937)
Benjamin Franklin on Liberty
“Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759 US author, diplomat, inventor, physicist, politician, & printer (1706 – 1790)
Peter Kreeft on Hell
“The national anthem of Hell is ‘I did it my way’.” Peter Kreeft
Lewis Carroll on Memory
“It’s a poor sort of memory that only works backward.” Lewis Carroll English author & recreational mathematician (1832 – 1898)
Mark Twain on Death
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.” Mark Twain
Carl Gustav Jung on Change
“There can be no transforming of darkness into light and of apathy into movement without emotion.” Carl Gustav Jung
Aristotle on Education
“The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” Aristotle
Stephen Covey on Problems
“The way we see the problem is the problem.” Stephen Covey
Francois de La Rochefoucauld on Agreement
“We rarely think people have good sense unless they agree with us.” Francois de La Rochefoucauld, Maximes (1678) French author & moralist (1613 – 1680)
Jodie Foster Wisdom Quote
“Normal is not something to aspire to, it’s something to get away from.” Jodie Foster US movie actress (1962 – )
Napoleon Bonaparte on Politics
“He who knows how to flatter also knows how to slander.” Napoleon Bonaparte
Judith Martin on Conversation
“Let us make a special effort to stop communicating with each other, so we can have some conversation.” Judith Martin, (Miss Manners)
W. Somerset Maugham on Criticism
“People ask for criticism, but they only want praise.” W. Somerset Maugham English dramatist & novelist (1874 – 1965)
Galileo Galilei on Ignorance
“I have never met a man so ignorant that I couldn’t learn something from him.” Galileo Galilei Italian astronomer & physicist (1564 – 1642)
Helen Keller on Life
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all” Helen Keller
W. L. George on War
“Wars teach us not to love our enemies, but to hate our allies.” W. L. George
George Bernard Shaw on Wisdom
“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can’t find them, make them.” George Bernard Shaw, “Mrs. Warren’s Profession” (1893) act II Irish dramatist & socialist (1856 – 1950)
Laurence J. Peter on Anger
“Speak when you are angry – and you will make the best speech you’ll ever regret.” Laurence J. Peter US educator & writer (1919 – 1988)
