François de La Rochefoucauld Quotes

Envy is more irreconcilable than hatred.

Although all the qualities of mind may be united in a great genius, yet there are some which are special and peculiar to him; his views are unlimited; he always acts uniformly and with the same activity; he sees distant objects as if present; he comprehends and grasps the greatest, sees and notices the smallest matters; his thoughts are elevated, broad, just and intelligible. Nothing escapes his observation, and he often finds truth in spite of the obscurity that hides her from others. A lofty mind always thinks nobly, it easily creates vivid, agreeable, and natural fancies, places them in their best light, clothes them with all appropriate adornments, studies others' tastes, and clears away from its own thoughts all that is useless and disagreeable.

Il ne sert à rien d'être jeune sans être belle, ni d'être belle sans être jeune.

We find very few ungrateful people when we are able to confer favours.

248. — Magnanimity despises all, to win all.

Il vaut mieux employer notre esprit à supporter les infortunes qui nous arrivent qu'à prévoir celles qui nous peuvent arriver.

We should only be astonished at still being able to be astonished.

Consolation for unhappiness can often be found in a certain satisfaction we get from looking unhappy

Il n'y a point d'accidents si malheureux dont les habiles gens ne tirent quelque avantage, ni de si heureux que les imprudents ne puissent tourner à leur préjudice.

Il y a du mérite sans élévation, mais il n'y a point d'élévation sans quelque mérite.

Few women's merit lasts as long as their beauty.

Everyone speaks well of his heart; no one dares speak well of his mind.

What the Italian poet has said of the virtue of women, namely that it is often simply the art of looking virtuous, can be applied to all our virtues

We are much harder on people who betray us in small ways than on people who betray others in great ones.

Nobody deserves to be praised for goodness unless he is strong enough to be bad, for any other goodness is usually merely inertia or lack of will-power.