Who sleepeth with dogs shall rise with fleas.
—John Florio, 1578Quotes
Man is merely a more perfect animal than the rest. He reasons better.
—Napoleon Bonaparte, 1816Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends.
—Alexander Pope, 1709There are some who, if a cat accidentally comes into the room, though they neither see it nor are told of it, will presently be in a sweat and ready to die away.
—Increase Mather, 1684Cows are among the gentlest of breathing creatures; none show more passionate tenderness to their young when deprived of them—and, in short, I am not ashamed to profess a deep love for these quiet creatures.
—Thomas De Quincey, 1821Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps, for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be.
—William Hazlitt, 1819Man is a noble animal, splendid in ashes and pompous in the grave.
—Thomas Browne, 1658Man is a troublesome animal and therefore is not very manageable.
—Plato, c. 349 BCThe righteous know the needs of their animals, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.
—Book of Proverbs, c. 500 BCAn ape will be an ape, though clad in purple.
—Erasmus, 1511In every man is a wild beast; most of them don’t know how to hold it back, and the majority give it full rein when they are not restrained by terror of law.
—Frederick the Great, 1759Life is no way to treat an animal.
—Kurt Vonnegut, 2005When the eagles are silent, the parrots begin to jabber.
—Winston Churchill, 1945