I hate the sight of monkeys; they remind me so of poor relations.
—Henry Luttrell, 1820Quotes
A good dog, sir, deserves a good bone.
—Ben Jonson, 1633Every ass thinks himself worthy to stand with the king’s horses.
—Gnomologia, 1732Man is merely a more perfect animal than the rest. He reasons better.
—Napoleon Bonaparte, 1816Do you not see how God is praised by those in the heavens and those on earth? The very birds praised Him as they wing their way.
—The Qur’an, c. 620When the eagles are silent, the parrots begin to jabber.
—Winston Churchill, 1945The elephant, although a gross beast, is yet the most decent and most sensible of any other upon earth. Although he never changes his female, and hath so tender a love for her whom he hath chosen, yet he never couples with her but at the end of every three years, and then only for the space of five days.
—St. Francis de Sales, 1609Animals are good to think with.
—Claude Lévi-Strauss, 1962Men, my dear, are very queer animals—a mixture of horse nervousness, ass stubbornness, and camel malice.
—T. H. Huxley, 1895Be a good animal, true to your animal instincts.
—D.H. Lawrence, 1911Every creature in the world is like a book and a picture, to us, and a mirror.
—Alain de Lille, c. 1200Man is no man, but a wolf, to a stranger.
—Plautus, c. 200 BCGo to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise.
—Book of Proverbs, c. 350 BC