Quotes By Francois De La Rochefoucauld

The word virtue is as useful to self-interest as the vices.

We often pardon those that annoy us, but we cannot pardon those we annoy.

Taste may change, but inclination never.

The surest way to be deceived is to consider oneself cleverer than others.

However rare true love may be, it is less so than true friendship.

People that are conceited of their own merit take pride in being unfortunate, that themselves and others may think them considerable enough to be the envy and the mark of fortune.

How is it that we remember the least triviality that happens to us, and yet not remember how often we have recounted it to the same person?

What keeps us from abandoning ourselves entirely to one vice, often, is the fact that we have several.

When a man must force himself to be faithful in his love, this is hardly better than unfaithfulness.

We do not despise all those who have vices, but we do despise those that have no virtue.

What men have called friendship is only a social arrangement, a mutual adjustment of interests, an interchange of services given and received; it is, in sum, simply a business from which those involved propose to derive a steady profit for their own self-love.

To know how to hide one's ability is great skill.

He who lives without folly isn't so wise as he thinks.

We always love those who admire us, but we do not always love those whom we admire.

Nothing is so contagious as example; and we never do any great good or evil which does not produce its like.

It is easier to know men in general, than men in particular.

Innocence does not find near so much protection as guilt.

Timidity is a fault for which it is dangerous to reprove persons whom we wish to correct of it.

They that apply themselves to trifling matters commonly become incapable of great ones.

We are all strong enough to bear other men's misfortunes.

Nothing is impossible; there are ways that lead to everything, and if we had sufficient will we should always have sufficient means. It is often merely for an excuse that we say things are impossible.

The generality of virtuous women are like hidden treasures, they are safe only because nobody has sought after them.

The one thing people are the most liberal with, is their advice.

Perfect courage is to do without witnesses what one would be capable of doing with the world looking on.

The force we use on ourselves, to prevent ourselves from loving, is often more cruel than the severest treatment at the hands of one loved.

There are a great many men valued in society who have nothing to recommend them but serviceable vices.

In all professions each affects a look and an exterior to appear what he wishes the world to believe that he is. Thus we may say that the whole world is made up of appearances.

Some accidents there are in life that a little folly is necessary to help us out of.

On neither the sun, nor death, can a man look fixedly.

We get so much in the habit of wearing disguises before others that we finally appear disguised before ourselves.