QUOTES AND IMAGES FROM MICHEL DE MONTAIGNE



THE ESSAYS OF MICHEL DE MONTAIGNE



QUOTATIONS FROM THE FIVE VOLUMES

With Five Etchings



A child should not be brought up in his mother's lap A gallant man does not give over his pursuit for being refused A generous heart ought not to belie its own thoughts A hundred more escape us than ever come to our knowledge A lady could not boast of her chastity who was never tempted A little cheese when a mind to make a feast A little thing will turn and divert us A man may always study, but he must not always go to school A man may govern himself well who cannot govern others so A man may play the fool in everything else, but not in poetry A man must either imitate the vicious or hate them A man must have courage to fear A man never speaks of himself without loss A man should abhor lawsuits as much as he may A man should diffuse joy, but, as much as he can, smother grief A man's accusations of himself are always believed A parrot would say as much as that A person's look is but a feeble warranty A well-bred man is a compound man A well-governed stomach is a great part of liberty A word ill taken obliterates ten years' merit Abhorrence of the patient are necessary circumstances Abominate that incidental repentance which old age brings Accept all things we are not able to refute Accommodated my subject to my strength Accursed be thou, as he that arms himself for fear of death Accusing all others of ignorance and imposition Acquiesce and submit to truth Acquire by his writings an immortal life Addict thyself to the study of letters Addresses his voyage to no certain, port Admiration is the foundation of all philosophy Advantageous, too, a little to recede from one's right Advise to choose weapons of the shortest sort Affect words that are not of current use Affection towards their husbands, (not) until they have lost them Affirmation and obstinacy are express signs of want of wit Affright people with the very mention of death Against my trifles you could say no more than I myself have said Age imprints more wrinkles in the mind than it does on the face Agesilaus, what he thought most proper for boys to learn? Agitated betwixt hope and fear Agitation has usurped the place of reason Alexander said, that the end of his labour was to labour All actions equally become and equally honour a wise man All apprentices when we come to it (death) All defence shows a face of war All I aim at is, to pass my time at my ease All I say is by way of discourse, and nothing by way of advice All judgments in gross are weak and imperfect All over-nice solicitude about riches smells of avarice All things have their seasons, even good ones All think he has yet twenty good years to come All those who have authority to be angry in my family Almanacs Always be parading their pedantic science Always complaining is the way never to be lamented Always the perfect religion Am as jealous of my repose as of my authority An advantage in judgment we yield to none "An emperor," said he, "must die standing" An ignorance that knowledge creates and begets Ancient Romans kept their youth always standing at school And hate him so as you were one day to love him And we suffer the ills of a long peace Anger and hatred are beyond the duty of justice Any argument if it be carried on with method Any old government better than change and alteration Any one may deprive us of life; no one can deprive us of death Anything appears greatest to him that never knew a greater Anything becomes foul when commended by the multitude Anything of value in him, let him make it appear in his conduct Appetite comes to me in eating Appetite is more sharp than one already half-glutted by the eyes Appetite runs after that it has not Appetite to read more, than glutted with that we have Applaud his judgment than commend his knowledge Apprenticeship and a resemblance of death Apprenticeships that are to be served beforehand Apt to promise something less than what I am able to do Archer that shoots over, misses as much as he that falls short Armed parties (the true school of treason, inhumanity, robbery Arrogant ignorance Art that could come to the knowledge of but few persons "Art thou not ashamed," said he to him, "to sing so well?" Arts of persuasion, to insinuate it into our minds As great a benefit to be without (children) As if anything were so common as ignorance As if impatience were of itself a better remedy than patience As we were formerly by crimes, so we are now overburdened by law Ashamed to lay out as much thought and study upon it Assurance they give us of the certainty of their drugs At least, if they do no good, they will do no harm At the most, but patch you up, and prop you a little Attribute facility of belief to simplicity and ignorance Attribute to itself; all the happy successes that happen Authority of the number and antiquity of the witnesses Authority to be dissected by the vain fancies of men Authority which a graceful presence and a majestic mien beget Avoid all magnificences that will in a short time be forgotten Away with that eloquence that enchants us with itself Away with this violence! away with this compulsion! Bashfulness is an ornament to youth, but a reproach to old age Be not angry to no purpose Be on which side you will, you have as fair a game to play Bears well a changed fortune, acting both parts equally well Beast of company, as the ancient said, but not of the herd Beauty of stature is the only beauty of men Because the people know so well how to obey Become a fool by too much wisdom Being as impatient of commanding as of being commanded Being dead they were then by one day happier than he Being over-studious, we impair our health and spoil our humour Belief compared to the impression of a seal upon the soul Believing Heaven concerned at our ordinary actions Best part of a captain to know how to make use of occasions Best test of truth is the multitude of believers in a crowd Best virtue I have has in it some tincture of vice Better at speaking than writing—Motion and action animate word Better have none at all than to have them in so prodigious a number Better to be alone than in foolish and troublesome company Blemishes of the great naturally appear greater Books go side by side with me in my whole course Books have many charming qualities to such as know how to choose Books have not so much served me for instruction as exercise Books I read over again, still smile upon me with fresh novelty Books of things that were never either studied or understood Both himself and his posterity declared ignoble, taxable Both kings and philosophers go to stool Burnt and roasted for opinions taken upon trust from others Business to-morrow But ill proves the honour and beauty of an action by its utility But it is not enough that our education does not spoil us By resenting the lie we acquit ourselves of the fault By suspecting them, have given them a title to do ill "By the gods," said he, "if I was not angry, I would execute you" By the misery of this life, aiming at bliss in another Caesar: he would be thought an excellent engineer to boot Caesar's choice of death: "the shortest" Can neither keep nor enjoy anything with a good grace Cannot stand the liberty of a friend's advice Carnal appetites only supported by use and exercise Cato said: So many servants, so many enemies Ceremony forbids us to express by words things that are lawful Certain other things that people hide only to show them Change is to be feared Change of fashions Change only gives form to injustice and tyranny Cherish themselves most where they are most wrong Chess: this idle and childish game Chiefly knew himself to be mortal by this act Childish ignorance of many very ordinary things Children are amused with toys and men with words Cicero: on fame Civil innocence is measured according to times and places Cleave to the side that stood most in need of her cloak on one shoulder, my cap on one side, a stocking disordered College: a real house of correction of imprisoned youth Coming out of the same hole Commit themselves to the common fortune Common consolation, discourages and softens me Common friendships will admit of division Conclude the depth of my sense by its obscurity Concluding no beauty can be greater than what they see Condemn all violence in the education of a tender soul Condemn the opposite affirmation equally Condemnations have I seen more criminal than the crimes Condemning wine, because some people will be drunk Confession enervates reproach and disarms slander Confidence in another man's virtue Conscience makes us betray, accuse, and fight against ourselves Conscience, which we pretend to be derived from nature Consent, and complacency in giving a man's self up to melancholy Consoles himself upon the utility and eternity of his writings Content: more easily found in want than in abundance Counterfeit condolings of pretenders Courageous in death, not because his soul is immortal—Socrates Courtesy and good manners is a very necessary study Crafty humility that springs from presumption Crates did worse, who threw himself into the liberty of poverty Cruelty is the very extreme of all vices Culling out of several books the sentences that best please me Curiosity and of that eager passion for news Curiosity of knowing things has been given to man for a scourge "Custom," replied Plato, "is no little thing" Customs and laws make justice Dangerous man you have deprived of all means to escape Dangers do, in truth, little or nothing hasten our end Dearness is a good sauce to meat Death can, whenever we please, cut short inconveniences Death conduces more to birth and augmentation than to loss Death discharges us of all our obligations Death has us every moment by the throat Death is a part of you Death is terrible to Cicero, coveted by Cato Death of old age the most rare and very seldom seen Deceit maintains and supplies most men's employment Decree that says, "The court understands nothing of the matter" Defence allures attempt, and defiance provokes an enemy Defend most the defects with which we are most tainted Defer my revenge to another and better time Deformity of the first cruelty makes me abhor all imitation Delivered into our own custody the keys of life Denying all solicitation, both of hand and mind Depend as much upon fortune as anything else we do Desire of riches is more sharpened by their use than by the need Desire of travel Desires, that still increase as they are fulfilled Detest in others the defects which are more manifest in us Did my discourses came only from my mouth or from my heart Did not approve all sorts of means to obtain a victory Die well—that is, patiently and tranquilly Difference betwixt memory and understanding Difficulty gives all things their estimation Dignify our fopperies when we commit them to the press Diogenes, esteeming us no better than flies or bladders Discover what there is of good and clean in the bottom of the po Disdainful, contemplative, serious and grave as the ass Disease had arrived at its period or an effect of chance? Disgorge what we eat in the same condition it was swallowed Disguise, by their abridgments and at their own choice Dissentient and tumultuary drugs Diversity of medical arguments and opinions embraces all Diverting the opinions and conjectures of the people Do not much blame them for making their advantage of our folly Do not to pray that all things may go as we would have them Do not, nevertheless, always believe myself Do thine own work, and know thyself Doctors: more felicity and duration in their own lives? Doctrine much more intricate and fantastic than the thing itself Dost thou, then, old man, collect food for others' ears? Doubt whether those (old writings) we have be not the worst Doubtful ills plague us worst Downright and sincere obedience Drugs being in its own nature an enemy to our health Drunkeness a true and certain trial of every one's nature Dying appears to him a natural and indifferent accident Each amongst you has made somebody cuckold Eat your bread with the sauce of a more pleasing imagination Education Education ought to be carried on with a severe sweetness Effect and performance are not at all in our power Either tranquil life, or happy death Eloquence prejudices the subject it would advance Emperor Julian, surnamed the Apostate Endeavouring to be brief, I become obscure Engaged in the avenues of old age, being already past forty Enough to do to comfort myself, without having to console others Enslave our own contentment to the power of another? Enters lightly into a quarrel is apt to go as lightly out of it Entertain us with fables: astrologers and physicians Epicurus Establish this proposition by authority and huffing Evade this tormenting and unprofitable knowledge Even the very promises of physic are incredible in themselves Events are a very poor testimony of our worth and parts Every abridgment of a good book is a foolish abridgment Every day travels towards death; the last only arrives at it Every government has a god at the head of it Every man thinks himself sufficiently intelligent Every place of retirement requires a walk Everything has many faces and several aspects Examine, who is better learned, than who is more learned Excel above the common rate in frivolous things Excuse myself from knowing anything which enslaves me to others Executions rather whet than dull the edge of vices Expresses more contempt and condemnation than the other Extend their anger and hatred beyond the dispute in question Extremity of philosophy is hurtful Fabric goes forming and piling itself up from hand to hand Fame: an echo, a dream, nay, the shadow of a dream Fancy that others cannot believe otherwise than as he does Fantastic gibberish of the prophetic canting Far more easy and pleasant to follow than to lead Fathers conceal their affection from their children Fault not to discern how far a man's worth extends Fault will be theirs for having consulted me Fear and distrust invite and draw on offence Fear is more importunate and insupportable than death itself Fear of the fall more fevers me than the fall itself Fear to lose a thing, which being lost, cannot be lamented? Fear was not that I should do ill, but that I should do nothing Fear: begets a terrible astonishment and confusion Feared, lest disgrace should make such delinquents desperate Feminine polity has a mysterious procedure Few men have been admired by their own domestics Few men have made a wife of a mistress, who have not repented it First informed who were to be the other guests First thing to be considered in love matters: a fitting time Flatterer in your old age or in your sickness Follies do not make me laugh, it is our wisdom which does Folly and absurdity are not to be cured by bare admonition Folly of gaping after future things Folly satisfied with itself than any reason can reasonably be Folly than to be moved and angry at the follies of the world Folly to hazard that upon the uncertainty of augmenting it Folly to put out their own light and shine by a borrowed lustre For fear of the laws and report of men For who ever thought he wanted sense? Fortune heaped up five or six such-like incidents Fortune rules in all things Fortune sometimes seems to delight in taking us at our word Fortune will still be mistress of events Fox, who found fault with what he could not obtain Friend, it is not now time to play with your nails Friend, the hook will not stick in such soft cheese Friendships that the law and natural obligation impose upon us Fruits of public commotion are seldom enjoyed Gain to change an ill condition for one that is uncertain Gave them new and more plausible names for their excuse Gentleman would play the fool to make a show of defence Gently to bear the inconstancy of a lover Gewgaw to hang in a cabinet or at the end of the tongue Give but the rind of my attention Give me time to recover my strength and health Give the ladies a cruel contempt of our natural furniture Give these young wenches the things they long for Give us history, more as they receive it than as they believe it Giving is an ambitious and authoritative quality Glory and curiosity are the scourges of the soul Go out of ourselves, because we know not how there to reside Good does not necessarily succeed evil; another evil may succeed Good to be certain and finite, and evil, infinite and uncertain Got up but an inch upon the shoulders of the last, but one Gradations above and below pleasure Gratify the gods and nature by massacre and murder Great presumption to be so fond of one's own opinions Greatest apprehensions, from things unseen, concealed Greatest talkers, for the most part, do nothing to purpose Greedy humour of new and unknown things Grief provokes itself Gross impostures of religions Guess at our meaning under general and doubtful terms Happen to do anything commendable, I attribute it to fortune Hard to resolve a man's judgment against the common opinions Haste trips up its own heels, fetters, and stops itself Hate all sorts of obligation and restraint Hate remedies that are more troublesome than the disease itself Have ever had a great respect for her I loved Have more wherewith to defray my journey, than I have way to go Have no other title left me to these things but by the ears Have you ever found any who have been dissatisfied with dying? Having too good an opinion of our own worth He cannot be good, seeing he is not evil even to the wicked He did not think mankind worthy of a wise man's concern He felt a pleasure and delight in so noble an action He judged other men by himself He may employ his passion, who can make no use of his reason He may well go a foot, they say, who leads his horse in his hand He must fool it a little who would not be deemed wholly a fool He should discern in himself, as well as in others He took himself along with him He who fears he shall suffer, already suffers what he fears He who is only a good man that men may know it He who lays the cloth is ever at the charge of the feast He who lives everywhere, lives nowhere He who provides for all, provides for nothing He who stops not the start will never be able to stop the course He will choose to be alone Headache should come before drunkenness Health depends upon the vanity and falsity of their promises Health is altered and corrupted by their frequent prescriptions Health to be worth purchasing by all the most painful cauteries Hearing a philosopher talk of military affairs Heat and stir up their imagination, and then we find fault Help: no other effect than that of lengthening my suffering High time to die when there is more ill than good in living Hoary head and rivilled face of ancient usage Hobbes said that if he Had been at college as long as others— Hold a stiff rein upon suspicion Home anxieties and a mind enslaved by wearing complaints Homer: The only words that have motion and action Honour of valour consists in fighting, not in subduing How infirm and decaying material this fabric of ours is How many and many times he has been mistaken in his own judgment How many more have died before they arrived at thy age How many several ways has death to surprise us? "How many things," said he, "I do not desire!" How many worthy men have we known to survive their reputation How much easier is it not to enter in than it is to get out How much it costs him to do no worse How much more insupportable and painful an immortal life How uncertain duration these accidental conveniences are Humble out of pride Husbands hate their wives only because they themselves do wrong I always find superfluity superfluous I am a little tenderly distrustful of things that I wish I am apt to dream that I dream I am disgusted with the world I frequent I am hard to be got out, but being once upon the road I am no longer in condition for any great change I am not to be cuffed into belief I am plain and heavy, and stick to the solid and the probable I am very glad to find the way beaten before me by others I am very willing to quit the government of my house I bequeath to Areteus the maintenance of my mother I can more hardly believe a man's constancy than any virtue I cannot well refuse to play with my dog I content myself with enjoying the world without bustle I dare not promise but that I may one day be so much a fool I do not consider what it is now, but what it was then I do not judge opinions by years I do not much lament the dead, and should envy them rather I do not say that 'tis well said, but well thought I do not willingly alight when I am once on horseback I enter into confidence with dying I ever justly feared to raise my head too high I every day hear fools say things that are not foolish I find myself here fettered by the laws of ceremony I find no quality so easy to counterfeit as devotion I for my part always went the plain way to work I grudge nothing but care and trouble I had much rather die than live upon charity I had rather be old a brief time, than be old before old age I hail and caress truth in what quarter soever I find it I hate all sorts of tyranny, both in word and deed I hate poverty equally with pain I have a great aversion from a novelty "I have done nothing to-day"—"What? have you not lived?" I have lived longer by this one day than I should have done I have no mind to die, but I have no objection to be dead I have not a wit supple enough to evade a sudden question I have nothing of my own that satisfies my judgment I honour those most to whom I show the least honour I lay no great stress upon my opinions; or of others I look upon death carelessly when I look upon it universally I love stout expressions amongst gentle men I love temperate and moderate natures I need not seek a fool from afar; I can laugh at myself I owe it rather to my fortune than my reason I receive but little advice, I also give but little I scorn to mend myself by halves I see no people so soon sick as those who take physic I speak truth, not so much as I would, but as much as I dare I take hold of, as little glorious and exemplary as you will I understand my men even by their silence and smiles I was always superstitiously afraid of giving offence I was too frightened to be ill "I wish you good health"—"No health to thee" replied the other I would as willingly be lucky as wise I would be rich of myself, and not by borrowing I write my book for few men and for few years Idleness is to me a very painful labour Idleness, the mother of corruption If a passion once prepossess and seize me, it carries me away If I am talking my best, whoever interrupts me, stops me If I stand in need of anger and inflammation, I borrow it If it be a delicious medicine, take it If it be the writer's wit or borrowed from some other If nature do not help a little, it is very hard If they can only be kind to us out of pity If they chop upon one truth, that carries a mighty report If they hear no noise, they think men sleep If to philosophise be, as 'tis defined, to doubt Ignorance does not offend me, but the foppery of it Impotencies that so unseasonably surprise the lover Ill luck is good for something Imagine the mighty will not abase themselves so much as to live Imitating other men's natures, thou layest aside thy own Immoderate either seeking or evading glory or reputation Impose them upon me as infallible Impostures: very strangeness lends them credit Improperly we call this voluntary dissolution, despair Impunity pass with us for justice In everything else a man may keep some decorum In ordinary friendships I am somewhat cold and shy In solitude, be company for thyself—Tibullus In sorrow there is some mixture of pleasure In the meantime, their halves were begging at their doors In this last scene of death, there is no more counterfeiting In those days, the tailor took measure of it In war not to drive an enemy to despair Inclination to love one another at the first sight Inclination to variety and novelty common to us both Incline the history to their own fancy Inconsiderate excuses are a kind of self-accusation Inconveniences that moderation brings (in civil war) Indiscreet desire of a present cure, that so blind us Indocile liberty of this member Inquisitive after everything Insensible of the stroke when our youth dies in us Insert whole sections and pages out of ancient authors Intelligence is required to be able to know that a man knows not Intemperance is the pest of pleasure Intended to get a new husband than to lament the old Interdict all gifts betwixt man and wife Interdiction incites, and who are more eager, being forbidden It (my books) may know many things that are gone from me It happens, as with cages, the birds without despair to get in It is better to die than to live miserable It is no hard matter to get children It is not a book to read, 'tis a book to study and learn It is not for outward show that the soul is to play its part It's madness to nourish infirmity Jealousy: no remedy but flight or patience Judge by justice, and choose men by reason Judge by the eye of reason, and not from common report Judgment of duty principally lies in the will Judgment of great things is many times formed from lesser thing Justice als takes cognisance of those who glean after the reaper Killing is good to frustrate an offence to come, not to revenge Knock you down with the authority of their experience Knot is not so sure that a man may not half suspect it will slip Knowledge and truth may be in us without judgment Knowledge is not so absolutely necessary as judgment Knowledge of others, wherein the honour consists Known evil was ever more supportable than one that was, new Ladies are no sooner ours, than we are no more theirs Language: obscure and unintelligible in wills and contracts Lascivious poet: Homer Last death will kill but a half or a quarter of a man Law: breeder of altercation and division Laws (of Plato on travel), which forbids it after threescore Laws cannot subsist without mixture of injustice Laws do what they can, when they cannot do what they would Laws keep up their credit, not for being just—but as laws Lay the fault on the voices of those who speak to me Laying themselves low to avoid the danger of falling Learn my own debility and the treachery of my understanding Learn the theory from those who best know the practice Learn what it is right to wish Learning improves fortunes enough, but not minds Least end of a hair will serve to draw them into my discourse Least touch or prick of a pencil in comparison of the whole Leave society when we can no longer add anything to it Leaving nothing unsaid, how home and bitter soever Led by the ears by this charming harmony of words Lend himself to others, and only give himself to himself Lessen the just value of things that I possess "Let a man take which course he will," said he; "he will repent" Let him be as wise as he will, after all he is but a man Let him be satisfied with correcting himself Let him examine every man's talent Let it alone a little Let it be permitted to the timid to hope Let not us seek illusions from without and unknown Let us not be ashamed to speak what we are not ashamed to think Let us not seek our disease out of ourselves; 'tis in us Liberality at the expense of others Liberty and laziness, the qualities most predominant in me Liberty of poverty Liberty to lean, but not to lay our whole weight upon others Library: Tis there that I am in my kingdom License of judgments is a great disturbance to great affairs Life of Caesar has no greater example for us than our own Life should be cut off in the sound and living part Light griefs can speak: deep sorrows are dumb Light prognostics they give of themselves in their tender years Little affairs most disturb us Little knacks and frivolous subtleties Little learning is needed to form a sound mind"—Seneca Little less trouble in governing a private family than a kingdom Live a quite contrary sort of life to what they prescribe others Live at the expense of life itself Live, not so long as they please, but as long as they ought Living is slavery if the liberty of dying be wanting Living well, which of all arts is the greatest Laying the fault upon the patient, by such frivolous reasons Lodge nothing in his fancy upon simple authority and upon trust Long a voyage I should at last run myself into some disadvantage Long sittings at table both trouble me and do me harm Long toleration begets habit; habit, consent and imitation Look on death not only without astonishment but without care Look upon themselves as a third person only, a stranger Look, you who think the gods have no care of human things Lose what I have a particular care to lock safe up Loses more by defending his vineyard than if he gave it up Love is the appetite of generation by the mediation of beauty Love shamefully and dishonestly cured by marriage Love them the less for our own faults Love we bear to our wives is very lawful Love, full, lively, and sharp; a pleasure inflamed by difficulty Loved them for our sport, like monkeys, and not as men Lower himself to the meanness of defending his innocence Made all medicinal conclusions largely give way to my pleasure Making their advantage of our folly, for most men do the same Malice must be employed to correct this arrogant ignorance Malice sucks up the greatest part of its own venom Malicious kind of justice Man (must) know that he is his own Man after who held out his pulse to a physician was a fool Man can never be wise but by his own wisdom Man may say too much even upon the best subjects Man may with less trouble adapt himself to entire abstinence Man must approach his wife with prudence and temperance Man must have a care not to do his master so great service Man must learn that he is nothing but a fool Man runs a very great hazard in their hands (of physicians) Mark of singular good nature to preserve old age Marriage Marriage rejects the company and conditions of love Melancholy: Are there not some constitutions that feed upon it? Memories are full enough, but the judgment totally void Men approve of things for their being rare and new Men are not always to rely upon the personal confessions Men as often commend as undervalue me beyond reason Men make them (the rules) without their (women's) help Men must embark, and not deliberate, upon high enterprises Men should furnish themselves with such things as would float Mercenaries who would receive any (pay) Merciful to the man, but not to his wickedness—Aristotle Methinks I am no more than half of myself Methinks I promise it, if I but say it Miracle: everything our reason cannot comprehend Miracles and strange events have concealed themselves from me Miracles appear to be so, according to our ignorance of nature Miserable kind of remedy, to owe one's health to one's disease! Miserable, who has not at home where to be by himself Misfortunes that only hurt us by being known Mix railing, indiscretion, and fury in his disputations Moderation is a virtue that gives more work than suffering Modesty is a foolish virtue in an indigent person (Homer) More ado to interpret interpretations More books upon books than upon any other subject More brave men been lost in occasions of little moment More solicitous that men speak of us, than how they speak More supportable to be always alone than never to be so More valued a victory obtained by counsel than by force Morosity and melancholic humour of a sour ill-natured pedant Most cruel people, and upon frivolous occasions, apt to cry Most men are rich in borrowed sufficiency Most men do not so much believe as they acquiesce and permit Most of my actions are guided by example, not by choice Mothers are too tender Motive to some vicious occasion or some prospect of profit Much better to offend him once than myself every day Much difference betwixt us and ourselves Must for the most part entertain ourselves with ourselves Must of necessity walk in the steps of another My affection alters, my judgment does not My books: from me hold that which I have not retained My dog unseasonably importunes me to play My fancy does not go by itself, as when my legs move it My humour is no friend to tumult My humour is unfit either to speak or write for beginners My innocence is a simple one; little vigour and no art My mind is easily composed at distance My reason is not obliged to bow and bend; my knees are My thoughts sleep if I sit still My words does but injure the love I have conceived within Natural death the most rare and very seldom seen Nature of judgment to have it more deliberate and more slow Nature of wit is to have its operation prompt and sudden Nature, who left us in such a state of imperfection Nearest to the opinions of those with whom they have to do Negligent garb, which is yet observable amongst the young men Neither be a burden to myself nor to any other Neither continency nor virtue where there are no opposing desire Neither men nor their lives are measured by the ell Neither the courage to die nor the heart to live Never any man knew so much, and spake so little Never did two men make the same judgment of the same thing Never observed any great stability in my soul to resist passions Never oppose them either by word or sign, how false or absurd Never represent things to you simply as they are Never spoke of my money, but falsely, as others do New World: sold it opinions and our arts at a very dear rate None that less keep their promise (than physicians) No alcohol the night on which a man intends to get children No beast in the world so much to be feared by man as man No danger with them, though they may do us no good No doing more difficult than that not doing, nor more active No effect of virtue, to have stronger arms and legs No evil is honourable; but death is honourable No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness No great choice betwixt not knowing to speak anything but ill— No man continues ill long but by his own fault No man is free from speaking foolish things No man more certain than another of to-morrow—Seneca No necessity upon a man to live in necessity No one can be called happy till he is dead and buried No other foundation or support than public abuse No passion so contagious as that of fear No physic that has not something hurtful in it No use to this age, I throw myself back upon that other No way found to tranquillity that is good in common Noble and rich, where examples of virtue are rarely lodged Nobody prognosticated that I should be wicked, but only useless Noise of arms deafened the voice of laws None of the sex, let her be as ugly as the devil thinks lovable Nor get children but before I sleep, nor get them standing Nor have other tie upon one another, but by our word Nosegay of foreign flowers, having furnished nothing of my own Not a victory that puts not an end to the war Not being able to govern events, I govern myself Not believe from one, I should not believe from a hundred Not certain to live till I came home Not conceiving things otherwise than by this outward bark Not conclude too much upon your mistress's inviolable chastity Not for any profit, but for the honour of honesty itself Not having been able to pronounce one syllable, which is No! Not in a condition to lend must forbid himself to borrow Not melancholic, but meditative Not to instruct but to be instructed Not want, but rather abundance, that creates avarice Nothing can be a grievance that is but once Nothing falls where all falls Nothing is more confident than a bad poet Nothing is so firmly believed, as what we least know Nothing is so supple and erratic as our understanding Nothing noble can be performed without danger Nothing presses so hard upon a state as innovation Nothing so grossly, nor so ordinarily faulty, as the laws Nothing tempts my tears but tears Nothing that so poisons as flattery Number of fools so much exceeds the wise O Athenians, what this man says, I will do O my friends, there is no friend: Aristotle O wretched men, whose pleasures are a crime O, the furious advantage of opportunity! Obedience is never pure nor calm in him who reasons and disputes Obliged to his age for having weaned him from pleasure Observed the laws of marriage, than I either promised or expect Obstinacy and contention are common qualities Obstinacy is the sister of constancy Obstinacy and heat in argument are the surest proofs of folly Obstinate in growing worse Occasion to La Boetie to write his "Voluntary Servitude" Occasions of the least lustre are ever the most dangerous Occupy our thoughts about the general, and about universal cause Of the fleeting years each steals something from me Office of magnanimity openly and professedly to love and hate Oftentimes agitated with divers passions Old age: applaud the past and condemn the present Old men who retain the memory of things past Omit, as incredible, such things as they do not understand On all occasions to contradict and oppose One door into life, but a hundred thousand ways out One may be humble out of pride One may more boldly dare what nobody thinks you dare One may regret better times, but cannot fly from the present One must first know what is his own and what is not Only desire to become more wise, not more learned or eloquent Only secure harbour from the storms and tempests of life Only set the humours they would purge more violently in work Open speaking draws out discoveries, like wine and love Opinions they have of things and not by the things themselves Opinions we have are taken on authority and trust Opposition and contradiction entertain and nourish them Option now of continuing in life or of completing the voyage Order a purge for your brain, it will there be much better Order it so that your virtue may conquer your misfortune Ordinances it (Medicine) foists upon us Ordinary friendships, you are to walk with bridle in your hand Ordinary method of cure is carried on at the expense of life Others adore all of their own side Ought not only to have his hands, but his eyes, too, chaste Ought not to expect much either from his vigilance or power Ought to withdraw and retire his soul from the crowd Our extremest pleasure has some sort of groaning Our fancy does what it will, both with itself and us Our judgments are yet sick Our justice presents to us but one hand Our knowledge, which is a wretched foundation Our qualities have no title but in comparison Our will is more obstinate by being opposed Over-circumspect and wary prudence is a mortal enemy Overvalue things, because they are foreign, absent Owe ourselves chiefly and mostly to ourselves Passion has a more absolute command over us than reason Passion has already confounded his judgment Passion of dandling and caressing infants scarcely born Pay very strict usury who did not in due time pay the principal People are willing to be gulled in what they desire People conceiving they have right and title to be judges Perfect friendship I speak of is indivisible Perfect men as they are, they are yet simply men Perfection: but I will not buy it so dear as it costs Perpetual scolding of his wife (of Socrates) Petulant madness contends with itself Philopoemen: paying the penalty of my ugliness Philosophy Philosophy has discourses proper for childhood Philosophy is nothing but to prepare one's self to die Philosophy is that which instructs us to live Philosophy looked upon as a vain and fantastic name Physicians cure by misery and pain Physic Physician worse physicked Physician: pass through all the diseases he pretends to cure Physician's "help", which is very often an obstacle Physicians are not content to deal only with the sick Physicians fear men should at any time escape their authority Physicians were the only men who might lie at pleasure Physicians: earth covers their failures Pinch the secret strings of our imperfections Pitiful ways and expedients to the jugglers of the law Pity is reputed a vice amongst the Stoics Plato angry at excess of sleeping than at excess of drinking Plato forbids children wine till eighteen years of age Plato said of the Egyptians, that they were all physicians Plato says, that the gods made man for their sport Plato will have nobody marry before thirty Plato: lawyers and physicians are bad institutions of a country Plays of children are not performed in play Pleasing all: a mark that can never be aimed at or hit Pleasure of telling (a pleasure little inferior to that of doing Poets Possession begets a contempt of what it holds and rules Practical Jokes: Tis unhandsome to fight in play Preachers very often work more upon their auditory than reasons Preface to bribe the benevolence of the courteous reader Prefer in bed, beauty before goodness Preferring the universal and common tie to all national ties Premeditation of death is the premeditation of liberty Prepare ourselves against the preparations of death Present Him such words as the memory suggests to the tongue Present himself with a halter about his neck to the people Presumptive knowledge by silence Pretending to find out the cause of every accident Priest shall on the wedding-day open the way to the bride Proceed so long as there shall be ink and paper in the world Profession of knowledge and their immeasurable self-conceit Profit made only at the expense of another Prolong his life also prolonged and augmented his pain Prolong your misery an hour or two Prudent and just man may be intemperate and inconsistent Prudent man, when I imagine him in this posture Psalms of King David: promiscuous, indiscreet Public weal requires that men should betray, and lie Puerile simplicities of our children Pure cowardice that makes our belief so pliable Put us into a way of extending and diversifying difficulties Pyrrho's hog Quiet repose and a profound sleep without dreams Rage compelled to excuse itself by a pretence of good-will Rage it puts them to oppose silence and coldness to their fury Rash and incessant scolding runs into custom Rather be a less while old than be old before I am really so Rather complain of ill-fortune than be ashamed of victory Rather prating of another man's province than his own Reading those books, converse with the great and heroic souls Reasons often anticipate the effect Recommendation of strangeness, rarity, and dear purchase Refusing to justify, excuse, or explain myself Regret so honourable a post, where necessity must make them bold Remotest witness knows more about it than those who were nearest Represented her a little too passionate for a married Venus Reputation: most useless, frivolous, and false coin that passes Repute for value in them, not what they bring to us Reserve a backshop, wholly our own and entirely free Resolved to bring nothing to it but expectation and patience Rest satisfied, without desire of prolongation of life or name Restoring what has been lent us, wit usury and accession Revenge more wounds our children than it heals us Revenge, which afterwards produces a series of new cruelties Reverse of truth has a hundred thousand forms Rhetoric: an art to flatter and deceive Rhetoric: to govern a disorderly and tumultuous rabble Richer than we think we are; but we are taught to borrow Ridiculous desire of riches when we have lost the use of them Right of command appertains to the beautiful-Aristotle Rome was more valiant before she grew so learned Rowers who so advance backward Rude and quarrelsome flatly to deny a stated fact Same folly as to be sorry we were not alive a hundred years ago Satisfaction of mind to have only one path to walk in Satisfied and pleased with and in themselves Say of some compositions that they stink of oil and of the lamp Scratching is one of nature's sweetest gratifications Season a denial with asperity, suspense, or favour See how flexible our reason is Seek the quadrature of the circle, even when on their wives Seeming anger, for the better governing of my house Send us to the better air of some other country Sense: no one who is not contented with his share Setting too great a value upon ourselves Setting too little a value upon others Settled my thoughts to live upon less than I have Sex: To put fools and wise men, beasts and us, on a level Shake the truth of our Church by the vices of her ministers Shame for me to serve, being so near the reach of liberty Sharps and sweets of marriage, are kept secret by the wise She who only refuses, because 'tis forbidden, consents Shelter my own weakness under these great reputations Short of the foremost, but before the last Should first have mended their breeches Silence, therefore, and modesty are very advantageous qualities Silent mien procured the credit of prudence and capacity Sins that make the least noise are the worst Sitting betwixt two stools Slaves, or exiles, ofttimes live as merrily as other folk Sleep suffocates and suppresses the faculties of the soul Smile upon us whilst we are alive So austere and very wise countenance and carriage—of physicians So many trillions of men, buried before us So much are men enslaved to their miserable being So that I could have said no worse behind their backs So weak and languishing, as not to have even wishing left to him Socrates kept a confounded scolding wife Socrates: According to what a man can Soft, easy, and wholesome pillow is ignorance and incuriosity Solon said that eating was physic against the malady hunger Solon, that none can be said to be happy until he is dead some people rude, by being overcivil in their courtesy Some wives covetous indeed, but very few that are good managers Sometimes the body first submits to age, sometimes the mind Souls that are regular and strong of themselves are rare Sparing and an husband of his knowledge Speak less of one's self than what one really is is folly Spectators can claim no interest in the honour and pleasure Stilpo lost wife, children, and goods Stilpo: thank God, nothing was lost of his Strangely suspect all this merchandise: medical care Strong memory is commonly coupled with infirm judgment Studied, when young, for ostentation, now for diversion Studies, to teach me to do, and not to write Study makes me sensible how much I have to learn Study of books is a languishing and feeble motion Study to declare what is justice, but never took care to do it Stumble upon a truth amongst an infinite number of lies Stupidity and facility natural to the common people Style wherewith men establish religions and laws Subdividing these subtilties we teach men to increase their doubt Such a recipe as they will not take themselves Suffer my judgment to be made captive by prepossession Suffer those inconveniences which are not possibly to be avoided Sufficiently covered by their virtue without any other robe Suicide: a morsel that is to be swallowed without chewing Superstitiously to seek out in the stars the ancient causes Swell and puff up their souls, and their natural way of speaking Swim in troubled waters without fishing in them Take a pleasure in being uninterested in other men's affairs Take all things at the worst, and to resolve to bear that worst Take my last leave of every place I depart from Take two sorts of grist out of the same sack Taking things upon trust from vulgar opinion Taught to be afraid of professing our ignorance Taught to consider sleep as a resemblance of death Tearing a body limb from limb by racks and torments Testimony of the truth from minds prepossessed by custom? That he could neither read nor swim That looks a nice well-made shoe to you That we may live, we cease to live That which cowardice itself has chosen for its refuge The action is commendable, not the man The age we live in produces but very indifferent things The authors, with whom I converse The Babylonians carried their sick into the public square The best authors too much humble and discourage me The Bible: the wicked and ignorant grow worse by it The cause of truth ought to be the common cause The conduct of our lives is the true mirror of our doctrine The consequence of common examples The day of your birth is one day's advance towards the grave The deadest deaths are the best The event often justifies a very foolish conduct The faintness that surprises in the exercises of Venus The gods sell us all the goods they give us The good opinion of the vulgar is injurious The honour we receive from those that fear us is not honour The ignorant return from the combat full of joy and triumph The impulse of nature, which is a rough counsellor The last informed is better persuaded than the first The mean is best The mind grows costive and thick in growing old The most manifest sign of wisdom is a continual cheerfulness The most voluntary death is the finest The particular error first makes the public error The pedestal is no part of the statue The privilege of the mind to rescue itself from old age The reward of a thing well done is to have done it The satiety of living, inclines a man to desire to die The sick man has not to complain who has his cure in his sleeve The storm is only begot by a concurrence of angers The thing in the world I am most afraid of is fear The very name Liberality sounds of Liberty The vice opposite to curiosity is negligence The virtue of the soul does not consist in flying high Their disguises and figures only serve to cosen fools Their labour is not to delivery, but about conception Their pictures are not here who were cast away Their souls seek repose in agitation There are defeats more triumphant than victories There are some upon whom their rich clothes weep There can be no pleasure to me without communication There is more trouble in keeping money than in getting it There is no allurement like modesty, if it be not rude There is no long, nor short, to things that are no more There is no merchant that always gains There is no reason that has not its contrary There is no recompense becomes virtue There is none of us who would not be worse than kings There is nothing I hate so much as driving a bargain There is nothing like alluring the appetite and affections There is nothing single and rare in respect of nature These sleepy, sluggish sort of men are often the most dangerous They (good women) are not by the dozen, as every one knows They begin to teach us to live when we have almost done living They better conquer us by flying They buy a cat in a sack They can neither lend nor give anything to one another They do not see my heart, they see but my countenance They err as much who too much forbear Venus They gently name them, so they patiently endure them (diseases) They have heard, they have seen, they have done so and so They have not one more invention left wherewith to amuse us They have not the courage to suffer themselves to be corrected They have yet touched nothing of that which is mine They juggle and trifle in all their discourses at our expense They must be very hard to please, if they are not contented They must become insensible and invisible to satisfy us They neither instruct us to think well nor to do well They never loved them till dead They who would fight custom with grammar are triflers Thing at which we all aim, even in virtue is pleasure Things grow familiar to men's minds by being often seen Things I say are better than those I write Things often appear greater to us at distance than near at hand Things seem greater by imagination than they are in effect Things that engage us elsewhere and separate us from ourselves Think myself no longer worth my own care Think of physic as much good or ill as any one would have me Thinking nothing done, if anything remained to be done Thinks nothing profitable that is not painful This decay of nature which renders him useless, burdensome This plodding occupation of bookes is as painfull as any other Those immodest and debauched tricks and postures Those oppressed with sorrow sometimes surprised by a smile Those which we fear the least are, peradventure, most to be fear Those who can please and hug themselves in what they do Those within (marriage) despair of getting out Thou diest because thou art living Thou wilt not feel it long if thou feelest it too much Though I be engaged to one forme, I do not tie the world unto it Though nobody should read me, have I wasted time Threats of the day of judgment Thucydides: which was the better wrestler Thy own cowardice is the cause, if thou livest in pain 'Tis all swine's flesh, varied by sauces 'Tis an exact life that maintains itself in due order in private 'Tis better to lean towards doubt than assurance—Augustine 'Tis evil counsel that will admit no change 'Tis far beyond not fearing death to taste and relish it 'Tis for youth to subject itself to common opinions 'Tis impossible to deal fairly with a fool 'Tis in some sort a kind of dying to avoid the pain of living well 'Tis more laudable to obey the bad than the good 'Tis no matter; it may be of use to some others 'Tis not the cause, but their interest, that inflames them 'Tis not the number of men, but the number of good men 'Tis said of Epimenides, that he always prophesied backward 'Tis so I melt and steal away from myself 'Tis the sharpness of our mind that gives the edge to our pains 'Tis then no longer correction, but revenge 'Tis there she talks plain French Titillation of ill-natured pleasure in seeing others suffer Title of barbarism to everything that is not familiar Titles being so dearly bought Titles of my chapters do not always comprehend the whole matter To be a slave, incessantly to be led by the nose by one's self To be, not to seem To condemn them as impossible, is by a temerarious presumption To contemn what we do not comprehend To die of old age is a death rare, extraordinary, and singular To do well where there was danger was the proper office To forbear doing is often as generous as to do To forbid us anything is to make us have a mind to't To fret and vex at folly, as I do, is folly itself To give a currency to his little pittance of learning To go a mile out of their way to hook in a fine word To keep me from dying is not in your power To kill men, a clear and strong light is required To know by rote, is no knowledge To make little things appear great was his profession To make their private advantage at the public expense To smell, though well, is to stink To study philosophy is nothing but to prepare one's self to die To what friend dare you intrust your griefs To whom no one is ill who can be good? Tongue will grow too stiff to bend Too contemptible to be punished Torture: rather a trial of patience than of truth Totally brutified by an immoderate thirst after knowledge Transferring of money from the right owners to strangers Travel with not only a necessary, but a handsome equipage True liberty is to be able to do what a man will with himself Truly he, with a great effort will shortly say a mighty trifle Truth itself has not the privilege to be spoken at all times Truth, that for being older it is none the wiser Turks have alms and hospitals for beasts Turn up my eyes to heaven to return thanks, than to crave Tutor to the ignorance and folly of the first we meet Twas a happy marriage betwixt a blind wife and a deaf husband Twenty people prating about him when he is at stool Two opinions alike, no more than two hairs Two principal guiding reins are reward and punishment Tyrannic sourness not to endure a form contrary to one's own Tyrannical authority physicians usurp over poor creatures Unbecoming rudeness to carp at everything Under fortune's favour, to prepare myself for her disgrace Universal judgments that I see so common, signify nothing Unjust judges of their actions, as they are of ours Unjust to exact from me what I do not owe Upon the precipice, 'tis no matter who gave you the push Use veils from us the true aspect of things Utility of living consists not in the length of days Valour has its bounds as well as other virtues Valour whetted and enraged by mischance Valour will cause a trembling in the limbs as well as fear Valuing the interest of discipline Vast distinction betwixt devotion and conscience Venture it upon his neighbour, if he will let him venture the making ourselves better without any danger Very idea we invent for their chastity is ridiculous Vice of confining their belief to their own capacity Vices will cling together, if a man have not a care Victorious envied the conquered Virtue and ambition, unfortunately, seldom lodge together Virtue is a pleasant and gay quality Virtue is much strengthened by combats Virtue refuses facility for a companion Viscid melting kisses of youthful ardour in my wanton age Voice and determination of the rabble, the mother of ignorance Vulgar reports and opinions that drive us on We are masters of nothing but the will We are not to judge of counsels by events We ask most when we bring least We believe we do not believe We can never be despised according to our full desert We cannot be bound beyond what we are able to perform We confess our ignorance in many things We consider our death as a very great thing We do not correct the man we hang; we correct others by him We do not easily accept the medicine we understand We do not go, we are driven We do not so much forsake vices as we change them We have lived enough for others We have more curiosity than capacity We have naturally a fear of pain, but not of death We have not the thousandth part of ancient writings We have taught the ladies to blush We much more aptly imagine an artisan upon his close-stool We must learn to suffer what we cannot evade We neither see far forward nor far backward We only labour to stuff the memory We ought to grant free passage to diseases We say a good marriage because no one says to the contrary We set too much value upon ourselves We still carry our fetters along with us We take other men's knowledge and opinions upon trust Weakness and instability of a private and particular fancy Weigh, as wise: men should, the burden of obligation Well, and what if it had been death itself? Were more ambitious of a great reputation than of a good one What a man says should be what he thinks What are become of all our brave philosophical precepts? What can they not do, what do they fear to do (for beauty) What can they suffer who do not fear to die? What did I say? that I have? no, Chremes, I had What he did by nature and accident, he cannot do by design What is more accidental than reputation? What may be done to-morrow, may be done to-day What more? they lie with their lovers learnedly What need have they of anything but to live beloved and honoured What sort of wine he liked the best: "That of another" What step ends the near and what step begins the remote What they ought to do when they come to be men What we have not seen, we are forced to receive from other hands What, shall so much knowledge be lost Whatever was not ordinary diet, was instead of a drug When I travel I have nothing to care for but myself When jealousy seizes these poor souls When their eyes give the lie to their tongue When time begins to wear things out of memory When we have got it, we want something else "When will this man be wise," said he, "if he is yet learning?" When you see me moved first, let me alone, right or wrong Where the lion's skin is too short Where their profit is, let them there have their pleasure too Wherever the mind is perplexed, it is in an entire disorder Whilst thou wast silent, thou seemedst to be some great thing Whimpering is offensive to the living and vain to the dead Who by their fondness of some fine sounding word Who can flee from himself Who discern no riches but in pomp and show Who does not boast of some rare recipe Who escapes being talked of at the same rate Who ever saw one physician approve of another's prescription Who has once been a very fool, will never after be very wise Who would weigh him without the honour and grandeur of his end Whoever expects punishment already suffers it Whoever will be cured of ignorance must confess it Whoever will call to mind the excess of his past anger Whosoever despises his own life, is always master Why do we not imitate the Roman architecture? Wide of the mark in judging of their own works Willingly give them leave to laugh after we are dead Willingly slip the collar of command upon any pretence whatever Wisdom has its excesses, and has no less need of moderation Wisdom is folly that does not accommodate itself to the common Wise man lives as long as he ought, not so long as he can Wise man never loses anything if he have himself Wise man to keep a curbing hand upon the impetus of friendship Wise may learn more of fools, than fools can of the wise Wise whose invested money is visible in beautiful villas Wiser who only know what is needful for them to know With being too well I am about to die Woman who goes to bed to a man, must put off her modesty Women who paint, pounce, and plaster up their ruins Wont to give others their life, and not to receive it World where loyalty of one's own children is unknown Worse endure an ill-contrived robe than an ill-contrived mind Would have every one in his party blind or a blockhead Would in this affair have a man a little play the servant Wrangling arrogance, wholly believing and trusting in itself Wretched and dangerous thing to depend upon others Write what he knows, and as much as he knows, but no more Wrong the just side when they go about to assist it with fraud Yet at least for ambition's sake, let us reject ambition Yet do we find any end of the need of interpretating? You and companion are theatre enough to one another You have lost a good captain, to make of him a bad general You may indeed make me die an ill death You must first see us die You must let yourself down to those with whom you converse Young and old die upon the same terms Young are to make their preparations, the old to enjoy them



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