I shall be an autocrat: that’s my trade. And the good Lord will forgive me: that’s his.
—Catherine the Great, c. 1796
Archive
Quotes
A woman’s greatest glory is to be little talked about by men, whether for good or ill.
—Pericles, c. 450 BCThere’s hope a great man’s memory may outlive his life half a year.
—William Shakespeare, c. 1600All progress is based upon a universal, innate desire on the part of every organism to live beyond its income.
—Samuel Butler, c. 1890Politics is the art of the possible.
—Otto von Bismarck, 1867It is shameful and inhuman to treat men like chattels to make money by, or to regard them merely as so much muscle or physical power.
—Pope Leo XIII, 1891It is so difficult not to become vain about one’s own good luck.
—Simone de Beauvoir, 1963One of the secrets of a happy life is continuous small treats.
—Iris Murdoch, 1978Because the newer methods of treatment are good, it does not follow that the old ones were bad: for if our honorable and worshipful ancestors had not recovered from their ailments, you and I would not be here today.
—Confucius, c. 515 BCThe less intelligent the white man is, the more stupid he thinks the black.
—André Gide, 1927These landscapes of water and reflection have become an obsession.
—Claude Monet, 1908A passion for horses, players, and gladiators seems to be the epidemic folly of the times. The child receives it in his mother’s womb; he brings it with him into the world, and in a mind so possessed, what room for science, or any generous purpose?
—Tacitus, c. 100The spirit of revolution, the spirit of insurrection, is a spirit radically opposed to liberty.
—François Guizot, 1830