William Hazlitt
William Hazlitt
William Hazlittwas an English writer, drama and literary critic, painter, social commentator, and philosopher. He is now considered one of the greatest critics and essayists in the history of the English language, placed in the company of Samuel Johnson and George Orwell. He is also acknowledged as the finest art critic of his age. Despite his high standing among historians of literature and art, his work is currently little read and mostly out of print...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionCritic
Date of Birth10 April 1778
lest stands wander
Lest he should wander irretrievably from the right path, he stands still.
appeals artificial books bosom businesses derive generally knowledge known learned learning none
Learning is the knowledge of that which is not generally known to others, and which we can only derive at second-hand from books or other artificial sources. The knowledge of that which is before us, or about us, which appeals to our experience, passions, and pursuits, to the bosom and businesses of men, is not learning. Learning is the knowledge of that which none but the learned know.
art great silence
Silence is the one great art of conversation.
character natural profound result simplicity
Simplicity of character is the natural result of profound thought.
belief connect sincerity words
Sincerity has to do with the connect between our words and thoughts, and not between our belief and actions.
confession deficiency himself justly lowest modesty
Modesty is the lowest of the virtues, and is a confession of the deficiency it indicates. He who undervalues himself is justly overvalued by others.
excel genius labor men profession
Men of genius do not excel in any profession because they labor in it, but they labor in it because they excel
creation knew tired
One is never tired of painting, because you have to set down, not what you knew already, but what you have just discovered. There is a continual creation out of nothing going on.
No one is idle, who can do any thing.
books certain enjoyment high imagine leaves open spirit time wears worse
One would imagine that books were, like women, the worse for being old : that they open their leaves more cordially; that the spirit of enjoyment wears out with the spirit of novelty; and that after a certain age, it is high time to put them on the s
believes die man shall
No young man believes he shall ever die
cannot classes distinct hands imagined might money observed people
There are two classes of people that I have observed who are not so distinct as might be imagined -- those who cannot keep their own money in their hands, and those who cannot keep their hands from other people's.
animal anxious bigger cannot dimensions grasp individual infinite man narrow object wishes within
Man is an individual animal with narrow faculties, but infinite desires, which he is anxious to concentrate in some one object within the grasp of his imagination, and where, if he cannot be all that he wishes himself, he may at least contemplate his own pride, vanity, and passions, displayed in their most extravagant dimensions in a being no bigger and no better than himself.
chiefly free journey leave muse ourselves rid
We go a journey chiefly to be free of all impediments and of all inconveniences; to leave ourselves behind, much more to get rid of others. It is because I want a little breathing-space to muse on indifferent matters. . . .