Quotes By Francois De La Rochefoucauld

One is never fortunate or as unfortunate as one imagines.

The heart is forever making the head its fool.

Not all those who know their minds know their hearts as well.

We are strong enough to bear the misfortunes of others.

If we have not peace within ourselves, it is in vain to seek it from outward sources.

As it is the characteristic of great wits to say much in few words, so small wits seem to have the gift of speaking much and saying nothing.

We easily forgive our friends those faults that do no affect us ourselves.

Jealousy is bred in doubts. When those doubts change into certainties, then the passion either ceases or turns absolute madness.

The sure way to be cheated is to think one's self more cunning than others.

Jealousy springs more from love of self than from love of another.

However greatly we distrust the sincerity of those we converse with, yet still we think they tell more truth to us than to anyone else.

People's personalities, like buildings, have various facades, some pleasant to view, some not.

If we are to judge of love by its consequences, it more nearly resembles hatred than friendship.

Those who are incapable of committing great crimes do not readily suspect them in others.

We only acknowledge small faults in order to make it appear that we are free from great ones.

There are very few people who are not ashamed of having been in love when they no longer love each other.

Pride, which inspires us with so much envy, is sometimes of use toward the moderating of it too.

Old men are fond of giving good advice to console themselves for their inability to give bad examples.

The more one loves a mistress, the more one is ready to hate her.

There are various sorts of curiosity; one is from interest, which makes us desire to know that which may be useful to us; and the other, from pride which comes from the wish to know what others are ignorant of.

We are more interested in making others believe we are happy than in trying to be happy ourselves.

There is no better proof of a man's being truly good than his desiring to be constantly under the observation of good men.

It is easier to be wise for others than for ourselves.

Women's virtue is frequently nothing but a regard to their own quiet and a tenderness for their reputation.

The man that thinks he loves his mistress for her own sake is mightily mistaken.

Perfect valour consists in doing without witnesses that which we would be capable of doing before everyone.

Usually we praise only to be praised.

It takes nearly as much ability to know how to profit by good advice as to know how to act for one's self.

We should often blush for our very best actions, if the world did but see all the motives upon which they were done.

In the misfortunes of our best friends we always find something not altogether displeasing to us.