Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims — François de La Rochefoucauld

Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims

François de La Rochefoucauld · Licencia: Public domain · Fuente

• 17.--The moderation of those who are happy arises from the calm which good fortune bestows upon their temper. ¶108
• 18.--Moderation is caused by the fear of exciting the envy and contempt which those merit who are intoxicated with their good fortune; it is a vain display of our strength of mind, and in short the moderation of men at their greatest height is only a desire to appear greater than their fortune. ¶109
• 19.--We have all sufficient strength to support the misfortunes of others. ¶110
• 20.--The constancy of the wise is only the talent of concealing the agitation of their hearts. ¶112
• 21.--Those who are condemned to death affect sometimes a constancy and contempt for death which is only the fear of facing it; so that one may say that this constancy and contempt are to their mind what the bandage is to their eyes. ¶114
• 22.--Philosophy triumphs easily over past evils and future evils; but present evils triumph over it. ¶116
• 23.--Few people know death, we only endure it, usually from determination, and even from stupidity and custom; and most men only die because they know not how to prevent dying. ¶117
• 24.--When great men permit themselves to be cast down by the continuance of misfortune, they show us that they were only sustained by ambition, and not by their mind; so that PLUS a great vanity, heroes are made like other men. ¶118
• 25.--We need greater virtues to sustain good than evil fortune. ¶120
• {The quotation wrongly had "does" for "doth".} ¶122
• 26.--Neither the sun nor death can be looked at without winking. ¶123
• 27.--People are often vain of their passions, even of the worst, but envy is a passion so timid and shame-faced that no one ever dare avow her. ¶124
• 28.--Jealousy is in a manner just and reasonable, as it tends to preserve a good which belongs, or which we believe belongs to us, on the other hand envy is a fury which cannot endure the happiness of others. ¶125
• 29.--The evil that we do does not attract to us so much persecution and hatred as our good qualities. ¶126
• 30.--We have more strength than will; and it is often merely for an excuse we say things are impossible. ¶127
• 31.--If we had no faults we should not take so much pleasure in noting those of others. ¶128
• 32.--Jealousy lives upon doubt; and comes to an end or becomes a fury as soon as it passes from doubt to certainty. ¶129
• 33.--Pride indemnifies itself and loses nothing even when it casts away vanity. ¶130
• 34.--If we had no pride we should not complain of that of others. ¶132
• 35.--Pride is much the same in all men, the only difference is the method and manner of showing it. ¶134
• 36.--It would seem that nature, which has so wisely ordered the organs of our body for our happiness, has also given us pride to spare us the mortification of knowing our imperfections. ¶136
• 37.--Pride has a larger part than goodness in our remonstrances with those who commit faults, and we reprove them not so much to correct as to persuade them that we ourselves are free from faults. ¶137
• 38.--We promise according to our hopes; we perform according to our fears. ¶138
• 39.--Interest speaks all sorts of tongues and plays all sorts of characters; even that of disinterestedness. ¶140
• 40.--Interest blinds some and makes some see. ¶141
• 41.--Those who apply themselves too closely to little things often become incapable of great things. ¶142
• 42.--We have not enough strength to follow all our reason. ¶143
• 43.--A man often believes himself leader when he is led; as his mind endeavours to reach one goal, his heart insensibly drags him towards another. ¶144
• 44.--Strength and weakness of mind are mis-named; they are really only the good or happy arrangement of our bodily organs. ¶145
• 45.--The caprice of our temper is even more whimsical than that of Fortune. ¶146
• 46.--The attachment or indifference which philosophers have shown to life is only the style of their self love, about which we can no more dispute than of that of the palate or of the choice of colours. ¶147
• 47.--Our temper sets a price upon every gift that we receive from fortune. ¶148
• 48.--Happiness is in the taste, and not in the things themselves; we are happy from possessing what we like, not from possessing what others like. ¶149
• 49.--We are never so happy or so unhappy as we suppose. ¶150
• 50.--Those who think they have merit persuade themselves that they are honoured by being unhappy, in order to persuade others and themselves that they are worthy to be the butt of fortune. ¶151
• {The translators' incorrectly cite Speech On Conciliation With America. Also, Burke does not actually write "Ambition has been...", he writes "It has been..." when speaking of ambition.} ¶153
• 51.--Nothing should so much diminish the satisfaction which we feel with ourselves as seeing that we disapprove at one time of that which we approve of at another. ¶154
• 52.--Whatever difference there appears in our fortunes, there is nevertheless a certain compensation of good and evil which renders them equal. ¶155
• 53.--Whatever great advantages nature may give, it is not she alone, but fortune also that makes the hero. ¶156
• 55.--The hate of favourites is only a love of favour. The envy of NOT possessing it, consoles and softens its regrets by the contempt it evinces for those who possess it, and we refuse them our homage, not being able to detract from them what attracts that of the rest of the world. ¶159

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