Simone Weil
Simone Weil
Simone Weil; 3 February 1909 – 24 August 1943) was a French philosopher, Christian mystic, and political activist...
NationalityFrench
ProfessionPhilosopher
Date of Birth3 February 1909
CityParis, France
CountryFrance
wish way becoming
We must wish either for that which actually exists or for that which cannot in any way exist or, still better, for both. That which is and that which cannot be are both outside the realm of becoming.
solitude wish virtue
To wish to escape from solitude is cowardice. Friendship is not to be sought, not to be dreamed, not to be desired; it is to be exercised (it is a virtue).
wish faults made
It is a fault to wish to be understood before we have made ourselves clear to ourselves.
grace wish trouble
We must not wish for the disappearance of our troubles but for the grace to transform them.
teamwork taken sorrow
With no matter what human being, taken individually, I always find reasons for concluding that sorrow and misfortune do not suit him; either because he seems too mediocre for anything so great, or, on the contrary, too precious to be destroyed.
men giving debt
Men owe us what they imagine they will give us. We must forgive them this debt.
pride men intelligent
The intelligent man who is proud of his intelligence is like the condemned man who is proud of his large cell.
felt power
Evil, when we are in its power, is not felt as evil, but as a necessity, even a duty.
culture instrument teachers
Culture is an instrument wielded by teachers to manufacture teachers, who, in their turn, will manufacture still more teachers.
peace war wheat
Petroleum is a more likely cause of international conflict than wheat.
truth dwelling long
The only way into truth is through one's own annihilation; through dwelling a long time in a state of extreme and total humiliation.
innocence ifs
What hope is there for innocence if it is not recognized?
past entering eternity
Death. An instantaneous state, without past or future. Indispensable for entering eternity.
loyalty spring law
There can be a true grandeur in any degree of submissiveness, because it springs from loyalty to the laws and to an oath, and not from baseness of soul.