Luc de
Luc de
book long way
In a way, the main fault of all books is that they are too long.
war fighting vices
Vice stirs up war, virtue fights.
life execution should
To execute great things, one should live as though one would never die.
positive risk sometimes
The most absurd and reckless aspirations have sometimes led to extraordinary success.
taken cunning
More are taken in by hope than by cunning.
appreciate easy difficult
It is easy to criticize an author, but difficult to appreciate him.
discovery views principles
A new principle is an inexhaustible source of new views.
evil our-actions goodness
Our actions are neither so good nor so evil as our impulses.
profound style ornaments
Clearness ornaments profound thoughts.
quality rewards virtue
If virtue were its own reward, it would no longer be a human quality, but supernatural.
maxims
Few maxims are true in every respect.
liars lying men
All men are born truthful and die liars.
heart numbers soul
It is in our own mind and not in exterior objects that we perceive most things; fools know scarcely anything because they are empty, and their heart is narrow; but great souls find in themselves a number of exterior things; they have no need to read or to travel or to listen or to work to discover the highest truths; they have only to delve into themselves and search, if we may say so, their own thoughts.
soul taste
To possess taste, one must have some soul.