Philip Dormer Stanhope Quotes

Conceal your learning from the company

Never display your learning, but on particular occasions. Reserve it for learned men, and let even these rather extort it from you, than appear forward to display it. Hence you will be deemed modest, and reputed to possess more knowledge than you really have. Never seem wiser or more learned than your company. The man who affects to display his learning, will be frequently questioned; and if found superficial, will be ridiculed and despised; if otherwise, he will be deemed a pedant. Nothing can lessen real merit (which will always shew itself) in the opinion of the world, but an ostentatious display by its possessor.

Jangan memaksa orang mendengarkan anda, sebab kalau orang tidak mau mendengarkan anda, lebih baik tutup mulut.

Women who are either indisputably beautiful or indisputably ugly are best flattered upon the score of their understandings; but those who are in a state of mediocrity are best flattered upon their beauty, or at least their graces, for every woman who is not absolutely ugly thinks herself handsome; but not hearing often that she is so is the more grateful and the more obliged to the few who tell her so; whereas a decided and conscious beauty looks upon every tribute paid to her beauty only as her due, but wants to shine and to be considered on the side of her understanding…

If you have an hour, will you not improve that hour, instead of idling it away?

Honest error is to be pitied not ridiculed.

Common sense is the best sense I know of

You will find that reason, which always ought to direct mankind, seldom does; but that passions and weaknesses commonly usurp its seat, and rule in its stead.

Man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.

I give my vote for Mr. Johnson to fill that great and arduous post. And I hereby declare that I make a total surrender of all my rights and privileges in the English language, as a freeborn British subject, to the said Mr. Johnson, during the term of his dictatorship. Nay more; I will not only obey him, like an old Roman, as my dictator, but, like a modern Roman, I will implicitly believe in him as my pope, and hold him to be infallible while in the chair; but no longer.

A weak mind is like a microscope, which magnifies trifling things, but cannot receive great ones.

But a young man should be ambitious to shine, and excel; alert, active, and indefatigable in the means of doing it.

Absolute power can only be supported by error, ignorance and prejudice.

The world can doubtless never be well known by theory: practice is absolutely necessary.

Let blockheads read what blockheads wrote.

In seeking wisdom thou art wise in imagining that thou hast attained it - thou art a fool.