Eric Hoffer
Eric Hoffer
Eric Hofferwas an American moral and social philosopher. He was the author of ten books and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in February 1983. His first book, The True Believer, was widely recognized as a classic, receiving critical acclaim from both scholars and laymen, although Hoffer believed that The Ordeal of Change was his finest work...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth25 July 1902
CountryUnited States of America
causes opinion holy
We can be satisfied with moderate confidence in ourselves and with a moderately good opinion of ourselves, but the faith we have in a holy cause has to be extravagant and uncompromising.
believe self desire
To believe that if only we had this or that we would be happy, or to pursue any excessive desire, diverts us from seeing that happiness depends on an adequate self.
children reality keys
Children are the keys of paradise.
kindness be-kind kind
We are made kind by being kind.
inferiority overcoming resentment
The sense of inferiority inherent in the act of imitation breeds resentment. The impulse of the imitators is to overcome the model they imitate.
character woe doe
Woe to him inside a non-conformist clique who does not conform to non-conformity.
hate despise
We cannot hate those who we despise.
real passion liberty
Where freedom is real, equality is the passion of the masses. Where equality is real, freedom is the passion of a small minority.
winning generosity weakness
We cannot win the weak by sharing our wealth with them. They feel our generosity as oppression.
power evil promise
It is by its promise of a sense of power that evil often attracts the weak.
fate destiny frustration
It is the awareness of unfulfilled desires which gives a nation the feeling that it has a mission and a destiny.
modernism industry modernity
When you automate an industry you modernize it; when you automate a life you primitivize it.
life political understanding
There would be no society if living together depended upon understanding each other.
world passionate obsession
A passionate obsession with the outside world or the private lives of others is an attempt to compensate for a lack of meaning in one's own life