Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontainewas the most famous French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, and in French regional languages...
NationalityFrench
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth8 July 1621
CountryFrance
Jean de La Fontaine quotes about
greed risk greedy
We risk all in being too greedy.
attitude pessimist optimist
A pessimist and an optimist, so much the worse; so much the better.
argument strongest
The argument of the strongest is always the best.
temptation victory tears
Love cries victory when the tears of a woman become the sole defence of her virtue.
men judging-people long
Beware, so long as you live, of judging men by their outward appearance.
friendship birthday memories
Friendship is the shadow of the evening, which increases with the setting sun of life.
hungry stomach
A hungry stomach cannot hear.
knowledge gnats sticks
Example is a dangerous lure: where the wasp got through the gnat sticks fast.
men numbers long
Nothing is so oppressive as a secret: women find it difficult to keep one long; and I know a goodly number of men who are women in this regard.
heart victory conquer
The finest victory is to conquer one's own heart.
speech scandal made
Socrates, when informed of some derogating speeches one had used concerning him behind his back, made only this facetious reply, "Let him beat me too when I am absent.
life art gay
To live lightheartedly but not recklessly; to be gay without being boisterous; to be courageous without being bold; to show trust and cheerful resignation without fatalism - this is the art of living.
flower glory
There is no road of flowers leading to glory.
inspirational motivational destiny
Our destiny is frequently met in the very paths we take to avoid it.